Biodiversity boost as Indian-born Cheetah delivers five cubs at Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno

Bhopal: A female cheetah, Mukhi, born in India, has given birth to five cubs at Kuno National Park in the Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav announced on Thursday, calling it a “landmark achievement” for Project Cheetah.

The project was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his birthday, 17 September 2022, at Kuno, marking the reintroduction of the species into India after its extinction in 1952.

Mukhi, now two-and-a-half years old, has become the first India-born cheetah to successfully reproduce, according to the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC). Posting the update on X, CM Yadav said both the mother and her newborn cubs are healthy, describing the birth as a “strong indicator of the species’ adaptation, health, and long-term prospects in Indian habitats”.

“A historic milestone has been achieved as Indian-born cheetah Mukhi has given birth to five cubs in Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh. This is an unprecedented breakthrough for India’s cheetah reintroduction initiative,” the Chief Minister wrote, adding that it strengthens optimism about establishing a self-sustaining and genetically diverse cheetah population in the country.

Mukhi is the offspring of Jwala, a cheetah brought from South Africa in February 2023 under the project. This marks the first time that a second generation of cheetahs has been born in the wild in an Indian forest since their reintroduction.

“This is the first time in recent history that an Indian-born cheetah has reproduced, making it a landmark achievement for Project Cheetah,” Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupendra Yadav posted on X.

With the addition of the five cubs, the total cheetah population in India has risen to 32 — 29 in Kuno National Park and three in Gandhi Sagar National Park, which has become the second habitat for the big cats in Madhya Pradesh.

Project Cheetah began in 2022 with the arrival of eight cheetahs from Namibia, followed by 12 more from South Africa in February 2023. The next phase of the project involves bringing a third batch of eight cheetahs from Botswana by the end of December this year.

The successful birth of cubs on Indian soil is being seen as a major boost for India’s ambitious conservation initiative, aimed at restoring the cheetah to its historical range and strengthening the country’s wildlife biodiversity efforts.