India signed agreement to bring cheetah from South Africa and Namibia
Recently India has finalized agreements to bring cheetahs from South Africa and Namibia.
By the end of 2022, India is set to bring cheetahs from South Africa and Namibia. There is a plan to settle them in Kuno Palpur of Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh.
The cheetah rehabilitation plan is being implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) is assisting the ministry in this.
Kuno Palpur Wildlife Sanctuary (Sheopur-Shivpuri forest land) is a suitable habitat for cheetah due to its favorable habitat, abundance of prey etc.
It is the only wildlife sanctuary in the world to have four big cat species; Lion, tiger, cheetah and leopard are found together.
Cheetah:
- The cheetah is a keystone species of dry forests, scrub forests and savannas.
- The cheetah was declared extinct in India in 1952 due to overhunting and habitat loss.
- Cheetah is the fastest terrestrial mammal in the world.
- It does not require much water.
- It is included in Appendix-1 of the Convention on International Trade in Threatened Species of Wildlife and Flora (CITES).
IUCN Red List Status: – African Cheetah – Vulnerable, Asiatic Cheetah – Critically Endangered.
Importance of relocation-
- Conservation of the cheetah, being a flagship species. The grass will regenerate the land and its biome and habitat.
- Flagship species are species whose conservation is known to be positively correlated with the conservation of other organisms.
- The increase in the possibilities of eco-tourism will increase the livelihood of the local community.
Source – The Hindu
