Gwalior, Sep 17: Eight cheetahs from Namibia – flying in a special cargo plane – landed in Madhya Pradesh Saturday morning, as part of the programme to reintroduce the feline in India seven decades after it was declared extinct in the country.
The big cats were flown to their new home Kuno National Park in the Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh by a Chinook helicopter where they will be released.
All the African cheetahs will be personally welcomed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today on his 72nd birthday.
On his birthday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release three of the African cheetahs into the park’s quarantine enclosures this morning, an official said.
Eight cheetahs, five female, and three male were brought to Gwalior in cargo aircraft as part of an inter-continental translocation project.
The cheetah was declared extinct in India in 1952. The cheetahs that would be released are from Namibia and have been brought under an MoU signed earlier this year.
On PM Modi’s birthday, the prime minister will also participate in Self Help Group (SHG) Sammelan later that day with women SHG members/community resource persons at Karahal, Sheopur.
Prime Minister Modi will visit Madhya Pradesh Today at around 10:45 AM he will release cheetahs in Kuno National Park, a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said.
The release of wild cheetahs by the prime minister in Kuno National Park is part of his efforts to revitalize and diversify India’s wildlife and its habitat, the statement said.
The introduction of cheetah in India is being done under Project Cheetah, which is the world’s first inter-continental large wild carnivore translocation project, the statement said.
Cheetah Project: How the initiative is going to save the biodiversity and ecosystem
This will help conserve biodiversity and enhance ecosystem services like water security, carbon sequestration, and soil moisture conservation, benefiting society at large.
This effort, in line with the prime minister’s commitment to environmental protection and wildlife conservation, will also lead to enhanced livelihood opportunities for the local community through eco-development and eco-tourism activities, the statement said.
Prime Minister Modi will also participate in the SHG Sammelan that will witness the attendance of thousands of women Self Help Group (SHG) members/community resource persons being promoted under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).
During the programme, Prime Minister Modi will also inaugurate four Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) skilling centres under the PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana.
DAY-NRLM aims at mobilizing rural poor households into SHGs in a phased manner and providing them long-term support to diversify their livelihoods, and improve their incomes and quality of life, the statement said.
The Mission is also working towards empowering the women SHG members through awareness generation and behavior change communication on issues like domestic violence, women’s education, and other gender-related concerns, nutrition, sanitation, health, etc., it said.