4 min readBhopalJan 4, 2024 07:23 AM IST
First published on: Jan 3, 2024 at 06:36 PM IST
Three cubs were born to the Namibian cheetah Aasha at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur district, wildlife officials said Wednesday.
Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Aseem Shrivastava told The Indian Express, “Aasha is currently in a larger enclosure and is being monitored by a team. She is totally wild in nature and is taking care of the cubs. We had our suspicions that she may have been pregnant; it was confirmed today after photographic evidence.”
The cheetah arrived in Kuno on September 17, 2022 in a crate marked “Aasha – The Hope”. It is said to be a confident animal that has travelled over 200 km after being released into the wild in March last year.
Wildlife officials had suspected in the beginning of the project that Aasha was pregnant after an interaction with a male cheetah, Pawan, on February 1 last year. Both remained together till March 11, but Aasha did not deliver any cubs, officials said.
The cheetah has also given the wildlife monitoring team a fair bit of trouble in the past – after it ventured into Shivpuri district, a team which tracked it down to a village was attacked by angry villagers who mistook them for dacoits.
Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav took to social media to break the news: “Thrilled to share that Kuno National Park has welcomed three new members. The cubs have been born to Namibian Cheetah Aasha.”
The Minister said that this was a “roaring success for Project Cheetah, envisioned by PM Narendra Modi to restore ecological balance. My big congrats to all experts involved in the project, the Kuno wildlife officials, and wildlife enthusiasts across India.”
Shrivastava said that the birth of the cubs is an “important indicator that the cheetahs are acclimatising to the Indian climate and have made Kuno their habitat”.
“They have accepted this habitat. It shows that the conditions are favourable. This is very good news for us. We are fully confident that they will be able to survive in the wild,” Shrivastav said.
Indeed, this is good news for wildlife officials who have been grappling with a string of deaths at Kuno National Park.
Last year, Namibian cheetah Jwala had given birth to four cubs after a mating interaction with another cheetah named Gaurav. However, three of its cubs died in May due to extreme weather conditions. The surviving ten month old cub is being looked after by Kuno park officials since its mother rejected it, after it was taken away by wildlife officials for treatment.
“Till the time the mother (Aasha) is taking care, they are in good hands. We hope that she looks after them – that is the best thing in nature. She will inculcate all the training required for them to survive,” Shrivastav said.
However, another official associated with the project said, “Basically these cubs are born in a large enclosure… it’s a little frustrating; ideally they should be born in the wild and not inside bomas. These cheetahs are not going to be exposed to natural pressures. They won’t be exposed to leopards; they are not free ranging. The benefit is that it’s going to enhance survival. The predators won’t be able to find them – that can be seen as a benefit.”
It was over a year ago, on September 17, 2022, that 20 cheetahs from Namibia and South Africa were relocated to Kuno National Park. Six have died since March 2023.
Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav, who took to social media to break the news, said that this was a "roaring success for Project Cheetah, envisioned by PM Narendra Modi to restore ecological balance. (X/@byadavbjp) 
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