A viral video showing a forest department driver offering water to a group of thirsty cheetahs in Madhya Pradesh has sparked a wave of admiration and debate across social media platforms. What was widely perceived as a touching display of compassion and coexistence, however, initially resulted in disciplinary action against the driver — only to be reversed later in the day.
The incident, captured near a village bordering Kuno National Park, features Satyanarayan Gurjar, a driver with the forest department, cautiously approaching a resting cheetah family under the shade of a tree. Carrying a jerrycan, Gurjar stops a few feet from the animals and pours water into a steel plate. Encouraged by off-camera voices calling, “Come, come,” the cheetahs rise and approach, calmly drinking from the plate, seemingly unthreatened by the human presence.
The video quickly gained traction online over the weekend, hailed by many as a hopeful sign of changing human attitudes toward wildlife. The moment was especially significant as it came just two weeks after a disturbing incident in which villagers threw stones at a cheetah named Jwala and her four cubs in the same region.
Despite the overwhelming public praise, the forest department reacted with concern. Officials argued that such close interactions could compromise the safety of both wildlife and humans by encouraging the cheetahs to become overly familiar with people, potentially prompting them to stray into populated areas.
Following the video’s widespread circulation, officers from the Kuno Forest Division visited the site and suspended Gurjar from his post, citing breach of protocol. The suspension ignited a fierce online debate, with many defending Gurjar’s intentions and calling for his reinstatement.
Later on Sunday evening, amid mounting public pressure and widespread support for the driver, the state’s Forest Minister intervened and ordered Gurjar’s reinstatement.
“The act of offering water reflects a changing mindset among local communities,” said a senior forest official. “It demonstrates a recognition that these animals are not inherently dangerous but an integral part of the ecosystem. However, we must also ensure that such acts do not foster unnatural familiarity, which could undermine conservation efforts.”
The incident has reignited discussions around the delicate balance between conservation policies and human empathy in wildlife-rich regions. As India continues its ambitious cheetah reintroduction program, the episode serves as a reminder of the complex interplay between wildlife protection and grassroots engagement.
on Friday, another video showing cheetahs eating their prey had surfaced on social media. Sources said both videos were shot near Umarikala village. Last month, several clips shared on social media showed a female cheetah and her four cubs near human settlements and at an under-construction railway bridge in Virpur tehsil.
At present, 17 cheetahs, including 11 cubs born on Indian soil, are roaming in the wild at KNP, while nine are in enclosures.
Eight Namibian cheetahs, five females and three males, were released in KNP on September 17, 2022, marking the first-ever intercontinental translocation of the big cats. In February 2023, 12 more cheetahs were translocated from South Africa to the sanctuary.
The protected forest now has 26 cheetahs, including 14 India-born cubs.
