South African female cheetah shifted to Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary, her new home in MP

Mandsaur (MP), Sep 17 (PTI) Dheera, a female cheetah from South Africa, was on Wednesday shifted from the Kuno National Park (KNP) in Madhya Pradesh's Sheopur district to the Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary - her new home in Mandsaur - on the third anniversary of Project Cheetah in India.

She was released into a 64 sq km enclosure inside the sanctuary, an official said.

Her relocation coincided with the 75th birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had three years ago released wild cheetahs brought from Namibia into an enclosure at the KNP as part of the Project Cheetah - the world's first inter-continental large wild carnivore translocation initiative.

The seven-year-old feline was shifted to her new home, five months after two South African male cheetahs -- Prabhash and Pavak -- were moved to the same facility, officials said.

Sanctuary's Divisional Forest Officer S K Atode said Dheera was released into a 64 sq km enclosure inside the wildlife sanctuary.

She has been kept in a separate area, away from the two male cheetahs for the time being, according to officials.

Dheera was transported to her new home from the KNP, a distance of around 350 km, in a specially-designed air-conditioned vehicle by road in more than seven hours, they said.

After being brought to the sanctuary, as the door of the crate carrying the big cat was carefully lifted for release, she paused briefly with her eyes scanning the unfamiliar terrain. But the next moment, she jumped out of the cage with a sudden burst of agility, and entered her new home.

Dheera was one of the 12 cheetahs brought to the KNP from South Africa in February 2023.

Prior to that, eight cheetahs - five females and three males - were brought to the KNP from Namibia in September 2022.

At present, there are 27 cheetahs in India, including 16 born in the country since the Project Cheetah launch. Of these, 24 are in the KNP.

India has lost 19 cheetahs, including adults due to different reasons, while 26 were born in the KNP, as per official figures.

Project Cheetah director Uttam Sharma confirmed that nine cheetahs brought to India died, while 10 born in India also succumbed.

Cheetah, the fastest land animal, was officially declared extinct in the country in 1952. Maharaja Ramanuj Pratap Singh Deo of Korea, Madhya Pradesh is believed to have killed the last three cheetahs in the country in 1947. PTI COR LAL NP