Cheetahs will be Relocated to Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Santuary from Kuno

As the centre is in talks with Kenya, South Africa and Botswana to relocate the new batch of cheetahs to Madhya Pradesh, the cheetah project steering committee is learnt to be planning of relocation of some of the cheetahs from Kuno National Park to Gandhi Sagar Wildlife sanctuary. The steering committee, however, advises that this relocation to Gandhi Sagar should be carried out with care, taking into account stress factors like heat. Even the relocation within the same state, Gandhi Sagar is about 300 km from Kuno and requires a well-equipped, planned technique to shift the exotic wildlife.

Why Gandhi Sagar

The decision was taken at a meeting last week as concerns linger over the availability of adequate prey and the presence of leopards, as competing co-predators, inside the National Park. Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary is an important link for the long-term conservation of cheetahs. The aim is to establish a population of 60 to 70 cheetahs across the Kuno-Gandhi Sagar landscape, which will spread eventually across Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

For many years now, the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department has been preparing for Gandhi Sagar relocation of cheetahs. In the first phase, the plan is to release 4 to 5 cheetahs into the fenced area and the western part of the sanctuary. A 64 km² area has been cordoned off for leopards so that there is no conflict between the two wild cats.