New Batch of Cheetahs Arrives in India, Boosting Conservation Efforts
Arrival of Cheetahs at Kuno National Park
On Saturday, nine cheetahs from Botswana were welcomed at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, bringing the total number of cheetahs in India to 48.
The reintroduction of cheetahs to India began in September 2022 under Project Cheetah, marking the species' return after being declared extinct in the country for over seventy years. These animals have primarily been sourced from African countries, including Namibia and South Africa.
Since the start of 2023, at least 18 cheetahs have unfortunately lost their lives.
The latest group of cheetahs arrived in Gwalior via an Indian Air Force aircraft, as confirmed by Sheopur's Public Relations Officer, Avantika Shrivastava. They were subsequently transported to the national park by helicopter.
Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav, oversaw the release of the cheetahs into their enclosures at the park.
According to Project Cheetah Director Uttam Kumar Sharma, these cheetahs will undergo a month-long quarantine before their eventual release into the wild.
VIDEO | Madhya Pradesh: Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav releases cheetahs brought from Botswana at Kuno National Park.
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 28, 2026
Nine cheetahs have been brought from Botswana at Kuno National Park (KNP), taking India’s total count of the big cats to 48. The third batch of cheetahs from… pic.twitter.com/JnMmGNiM9E
This group marks the third batch of cheetahs brought to India as part of the translocation initiative, following earlier introductions from Namibia in September 2022 and South Africa in February 2023.
The arrival of these cheetahs comes over two months after a tragic incident where a 20-month-old cheetah cub from Kuno National Park was killed after being struck by a vehicle on the Agra-Mumbai National Highway.
This cub was one of two males born in India to Gamini, a cheetah from South Africa. They had strayed outside the park's boundaries nearly a month prior, as reported by forest officials.
Just three days before this incident, another cub was found dead shortly after being released into the wild with its mother and sibling.
In 2025, Kuno National Park saw the birth of 12 cubs, although six did not survive. Between February 7 and February 18, nine additional cubs were born in two separate litters. Overall, since 2023, 39 cubs have been born at Kuno.
The Indian government officially declared the cheetah extinct in 1952, with the last recorded sightings occurring in 1948 when three were shot in the sal forests of Koriya District, Chhattisgarh.