Dozen more cheetahs to be flown to India from South Africa in February

South Africa and India have signed an agreement, under which 12 cheetahs will get flown into India annually for the next eight to 10 years. This comes after last year’s translocation of eight cheetahs from Namibia. Both the countries call the reintroduction of cheetahs in India an “ecological objective”.

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If reports are to go by, come February, and the first batch of 12 cheetahs will be relocated to India.


It is imperative to keep in mind that cheetahs are not a completely new species to the Indian biodiversity. They roamed the Indian wilderness till they became extinct in India in 1952 due to over-hunting and loss of habitat.
The African cheetahs are a subspecies and if the reports are to go by, the ones that were relocated last year, are in the process of adjusting to the environment of the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh.

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Reintroduction of the cheetahs in India is expected to add to the livelihood options of the local communities as it would help in eco-tourism.

As per the reports, this is a part of Project Cheetah, a project which aims at making cheetahs a part of the Indian biodiversity once again. As per the project, the aim is to bring in 50 cheetahs in India over the course of five years. The plan is also to introduce these cheetahs to various national parks in the country.