The world’s fastest animal the cheetah may return to India if the Environment Ministry approves a Rs 260-crore reintroduction programme prepared by Wildlife Institute of India (WII) in Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh. Earlier, the Supreme Court had put this programme on hold and said that translocation of Gir lions from Gujarat to Kuno Palpur in MP should be finalised first.
However, after the SC order, the authorities had started search for another place to reintroduce cheetah. Nauradehi sanctuary, spread over an area of 1,200 sq km, was finalised as proposed home for cheetahs in India.
The sources in WII said Nauradehi forest is not dense enough to restrict the fast movement of the big cat. Besides, the prey base of cheetah is in abundance there, they said. According to the project, Rs 25-30 crore would be spent to built an enclosure within an area of 150 sq km for cheetahs in Nauradehi. The number of cheetahs to be imported is still not final. However, in the first go, three big cats are expected to be translocated. The felines will be first released in captivity before they are let out in the wild.
However, the ambitious programme can take off only if the Centre is willing to bear the expenses. The programme will involve the relocation of about 20-22 villages from the wildlife sanctuary.
After the MP Government denied bearing the expenses, officials of State forest department wrote to the Environment Ministry and National Tiger Conservation Authority seeking funds for the project. Their replies are awaited.
According to Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Wildlife, Narendra Kumar, “For shifting these villages and for making other suitable arrangements, the forest department will require more than Rs 260 crore. We want commitment from MoEF or NTCA about the funding agency of the project. We will begin the ground work only after this.”
The ambitious project was conceived by the former Environment and Forest Minister Jairam Ramesh in 2009. As decided earlier, if the project gets the Centre’s nod, the felines would be translocated from Namibia in Africa.
