Bhopal: President Droupadi Murmu concluded her visit to Kuno National Park by interacting with ‘Cheetah Mitras’ and members of the Sahariya tribe of Madhya Pradesh, said an official on Monday.
She appreciated the ‘Cheetah Mitras’ for their contributions to Project Cheetah, said the official in a statement.
On Sunday, the President visited the Kuno National Park, toured the Cheetah Management Area, and was briefed on the Project Cheetah.
During her state visit to Botswana in November 2025, the President witnessed the symbolic donation of eight cheetahs by Botswana, which came to Kuno in February 2026.
Project Cheetah reflects India’s commitment to biodiversity restoration through the reintroduction of cheetahs after their extinction in the country, the statement said.
Earlier, Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav praised officials and forest staff after the country’s Cheetah population reached 53, including 33 born in India.
Chairing a review meeting of Project Cheetah, Yadav said, “Survival rates of introduced individuals and cubs have been found to be in line with, and in certain cases, better than, global benchmarks, demonstrating the effectiveness of scientific management and monitoring protocols.”
He said the implementation strategy adopts a landscape-based approach for long-term sustainability.
“Kuno National Park has been developed as the primary site for establishment of the population, while Gandhisagar Wildlife Sanctuary has been prepared as an additional habitat to support further expansion,” the Minister said in a statement.
These sites are part of a larger, interconnected landscape across central India that facilitates dispersal and genetic exchange.
Preparatory work is also underway to expand the project to new areas, including the Banni grasslands in Gujarat, where habitat readiness and prey augmentation measures have reached satisfactory levels, he said.
The meeting was held to assess the progress of Project Cheetah and deliberate on the future course of action. The meeting was attended by senior officials of the MoEFCC, project experts, and senior field officers.
(IANS)
