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Seventy years after being extinct from India, world's fastest land animal Cheetahs walk on the Indian ground once again.
How did cheetahs go extinct in India?
Cheetah
- Scientific name- Acinonyx jubatus
- The planet’s fastest land animal
- The least dangerous big cat
- Population- Around 7,100 cheetahs left in the wild
- IUCN Status- Vulnerable
- Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
- The cheetah has an ancient history, with a Neolithic cave painting of a spotted feline being hunted having been found at Chaturbunj Nala in Mandasur, Madhya Pradesh.
- The name ‘cheetah’ is believed to have originated from Sanskrit word chitrak, which means ‘the spotted one’.
- In India, the cheetah was found from Jaipur and Lucknow in the north to Mysore in the south, and from Kathiawar in the west to Deogarh in the east.
- The cheetah was officially declared extinct by the Indian government in 1952.
- Reasons for extinction
- Over-hunting
- Decimation of its relatively narrow prey base species
- Loss of its grassland-forest habitat
Why is the cheetah being brought back?
- Cheetah Reintroduction Project- India carried out negotiations with Iran in 1970s as it was Asiatic.
- But our potential release sites needed upgradations with an increase in prey base and greater protection.
- This is no longer possible as the cheetah population in Iran has dwindled to under 50.
- A plan to reintroduce cheetahs in India was endorsed in 2009 by then Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh.
- However, it was shot down by the Supreme Court in 2013.
- The idea was revived in 2017 by the Narendra Modi government, and the SC cleared the move in 2020 “on an experimental basis”.
- Kuno-Palpur National Park, Madhya Pradesh was found to be ready to receive the cheetah immediately, as it had already been prepared for the translocation of Asiatic Lion.
- Need for reintroduction- The main objective is
- To restore India’s historic evolutionary balance
- To develop a cheetah metapopulation that will help in the global conservation of the animal
- As it is a flagship species, the conservation of the cheetah will revive grassland-forests habitat, much like Project Tiger has done for forests.
- The genetic difference between the African and Indian cheetahs is so small, and the ecological functions are practically the same.
What are the concerns with cheetah reintroduction?
- Gene flow- The transfer of genetic material from one population to another (Gene flow) is a matter of concern.
- Maintaining genetic diversity and preventing inbreeding is a challenge in such a small group of cheetahs.
- Habitat and prey base- The factors that caused a species to go extinct must be dealt with to secure the habitat, before restocking.
- Physical security, enough space, and ample food are the priorities.
- Landscape viability- Animals has the possibility to remain susceptible to demographic and environmental events in a broken landscape.
- Homing instinct- Most animals have an ability to sense direction and, if displaced, find their way back.
- In the case of big cats, this not only risks losing the released animal from the target site but also causes man-animal conflict.
- Rehabilitation of people- The relocation of Bagcha residents in Madhya Pradesh has spurred up fights for their rights.
- Bagcha village is dominated by Sahariya adivasis falling under the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG).
