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PM Modi releases Namibian cheetahs in Kuno

by Trans World Features | @twfindia 17 Sep 2022, 03:39 am

Sheopur/UNI: In a world-level event marking his 72nd birthday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday formally released three Namibian cheetahs in this district’s Kuno National Park – a historic moment indeed for which preparations were underway for weeks.

This is the maiden intercontinental translocation project of its kind and the carnivore’s presence in India marks the conclusion of a seven-decade-long hiatus.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan was among the dignitaries who graced the occasion.

A total eight animals were brought from Africa to Gwalior by plane and thence to Kuno by an Army aircraft.

The introduction of Cheetah in India is being done under Project Cheetah, which is world’s first inter-continental large wild carnivore translocation project.

Cheetahs will help in the restoration of open forest and grassland ecosystems in India.

This will help conserve biodiversity and enhance the ecosystem services like water security, carbon sequestration and soil moisture conservation, benefiting the society at large.