At least five cheetahs from Kuno National Park (KNP) in Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh apparently decided to go on a long sightseeing walk and reached the neighbouring Morena district, about 50-60 km away, on Sunday morning.
Early risers in the Jaura area of Morena were in for a big surprise when they saw the five felines strolling across a road near the Pagara dam around 6.45 AM.
The rare sight elicited mixed responses from people. Some got scared and tried to move away, while the more intrepid ones went closer and clicked pictures, and some even made videos.
Forest officials were informed about the presence of the animals.
Deputy Ranger Vinod Kumar Upadhyay said the cheetahs were being tracked through GPS collars. He said a forest team reached the spot and located the five cheetahs near the dam.
Forest officials and ‘Cheetah Mitras’ (trained volunteers) maintained a close watch on the movement of the felines.
Forest officials said the animals had travelled from KNP via Kailaras before reaching the Jaura region. They were later spotted moving towards Khokha Pura village near Devgarh, with forest and tracking teams following them.
KNP Divisional Forest Officer R Thirukural said the cheetahs are being continuously tracked by dedicated teams.
He said that cheetahs typically do not pose a threat to humans.
Nonetheless, the forest department has appealed to villagers to remain alert and not go close to the cheetahs.
The total number of cheetahs in Madhya Pradesh, and in India, is presently 31.
The total number of cheetahs at KNP is presently 29. This includes 10 adult foreign cheetahs and 19 cubs born on Indian soil.
Two male cheetahs, Prabhas and Paavak, aged six-years each, were shifted in April this year from KNP to the Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary in the Ujjain division of Madhya Pradesh.
The cheetah was declared extinct in the country back in 1952. The country’s last cheetah was shot dead in 1947 in the Koriya district (officially called Korea district) of present-day Chhattisgarh, which was once part of MP.
To revive their population in India under the ambitious Project Cheetah, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his 72nd birthday on 17 September 2022 released eight Namibian Cheetahs—five females and three males—into special enclosures at KNP.
On 18 February 2023, another set of 12 cheetahs was brought to KNP from South Africa.
However, 13 cheetahs have died since 2023, including eight adult cheetahs brought from Africa and five of their cubs born in India.