PROJECT CHEETAH (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Env & Eco)

Context: A government report reveals that recently, four out of the six criteria set for evaluating the short-term success of India's cheetah reintroduction program have been achieved.

Project Cheetah

• About: It is India’s cheetah relocation program. This is the first intercontinental reintroduction of a wild, large carnivore species.
• Began on: 17 September 2023
• Authorities - The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) is the apex body entrusted with the implementation of Project Cheetah.
• Nodal Ministry:  Ministry of the forest, environment, and climate change.
• Historic cheetah in India - Asiatic Cheetahs were once abundant in India but the last cheetah in the country died in 1952.
• Reintroduced cheetah - The animals brought from Namibia and South Africa are the Southeast African cheetahs.
• IUCN Status
• African Cheetah – Vulnerable 
• Asiatic Cheetah – Critically endangered (Iran)

Kuno National Park

• Situated:  Between the Aravallis and the Madhav National Park, Kuno serves as an important wildlife corridor
• It was notified as a sanctuary in 1981 and then upgraded to a national park in 2018. 
• Area: 750 kilometers of pristine wilderness.
• Vegetation: The tropical dry deciduous forest mainly consists of Anogeissus pendula (Kardhai), Senegalia catechu (Khair) Boswellia serrata (Salai), and associated flora.