Three cubs born to Namibian cheetah at Kuno National Park

New Delhi, Jan 23 (PTI) A Namibian cheetah has given birth to three cubs at the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, weeks after three cubs were born to another feline.

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav shared the news on X on Tuesday, saying, "Kuno's new cubs! Namibian cheetah named Jwala has given birth to three cubs. This comes just weeks after Namibian cheetah Aasha gave birth to her cubs." He further said in the post, "Congratulations to all wildlife frontline warriors and wildlife lovers across the country. May Bharat's wildlife thrive." On January 3, Kuno National Park officials reported that the Namibian cheetah Aasha had given birth to three cubs.

Jwala (Namibian name Siyaya) had also given birth to four cubs last March. However, only one of them survived.

Jwala and Aasha are among the cheetahs translocated to India from Namibia under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Project Cheetah, aimed at re-introducing the only large carnivore species that went extinct in independent India.

The first batch of eight cheetahs was introduced in India in September 2022.

The second batch of 12 cheetahs was flown in from South Africa last February.

The much-vaunted cheetah conservation project, however, has drawn sharp criticism over the deaths of seven of the 20 adults imported from Namibia and South Africa.

According to officials, one of the biggest challenges faced in the first year of managing the cheetahs in India was the unexpected development of winter coats by some of the animals during the Indian summer and monsoon, in anticipation of the African winter (June to September).

The winter coat, combined with high humidity and temperatures, caused itching, prompting the animals to scratch their necks on tree trunks or the ground. This led to bruising and exposing the skin, where flies laid eggs, resulting in maggot infestations and, ultimately, bacterial infections and septicemia, leading to the deaths of three cheetahs, an official explained.

"The mortalities under Project Cheetah so far have been within the expected limits. As per Cheetah Action Plan, we anticipated approximately 50 per cent mortality. Right now, 14 imported cheetahs are surviving, besides one cub born on Indian soil," SP Yadav, additional director general of forests in the Union Environment Ministry, had said earlier. PTI