9 cheetahs have died in the last 6 months in India

In another incident of loss for India’s pride, the ninth cheetah dies at the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh. A female cheetah named ‘Dhatri’ was found dead in the park on August 2 morning.

As part of PM Modi and India’s ambitious ‘Project Cheetah’, 20 cheetahs were brought into India from South Africa and Namibia.

Cheetahs were extinct in India for nearly seven decades and these cheetahs were brought into India with the aim of increasing their population and habitation in the country.

Of the nine cheetahs dead, three were cubs born to cheetahs brought in from Africa.

Officials concerned attribute natural causes for the death of these cheetahs at the park. None of them have died due to poaching, poisoning, electrocution and any other unnatural cause.

The potential causes for these deaths have been attributed to intra-species fights, diseases and injuries sustained during hunting. Attacks on cheetahs by other carnivores at the park and scorching heat are also believed to be other reasons for these feline deaths.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) say that these deaths are not alarming as they all have died over natural causes.

With the series of deaths of cheetahs, officials have taken various measures to protect the felines to ensure their well-being in the park.