Context:
The expert advisory committee of Project Cheetah recommended Kuno National Park cheetahs to undergo a thorough, physical medical review.
Project Cheetah:
- 1st proposed by – Indian conservationists & Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) in 2009
- Approved by Supreme Court in 2020 as a pilot project
- Aim – To reintroduce at least 50 cheetahs over next five years.
- World’s 1st inter-continental large wild carnivore translocation project.
- Nodal Agency – National Tiger Conservation Authority
- Proposed Relocation Sites –
- Madhya Pradesh: Kuno National Park, Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhav National Park, Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary
- Rajasthan:Mukundara Tiger Reserve, Shergarh Wildlife Sanctuary, Bhainsrorgarh Wildlife Sanctuary
- Significance –
- Restoring open forest and grassland ecosystems in India.
- Conserve biodiversity and enhance ecosystem services like water security, carbon sequestration etc.
- Enhanced livelihood opportunities for local community through eco-development and ecotourism activities.
National Tiger Conservation Authority:
- A statutory body under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change.
- Recommended by – Tiger Task Force (in 2005)
- Constituted under enabling provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
About Cheetah:
- A keystone species of dry forests, scrub forests, and savannahs.
- It is the only large wild mammalian species that went extinct from India.
- Reason for extinct – Overhunting and habitat loss [species was declared extinct in 1952]
- Protection Status –
- Appendix 1 of CITES
- IUCN status:
- African Cheetah – Vulnerable
- Asiatic Cheetah – Critically endangered
- Major Cheetah range countries – Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Angola, Zambia, Tanzania, and Kenya in Africa, and Iran and India in Asia.
Kuno National Park (KNP):
- Location – Vindhyan Hills in Madhya Pradesh.
- Kuno River (tributary of the Chambal River) bisects the National Park.
- Offers the prospect of housing 4 big cats of India– Tiger, Lion, Leopard and Cheetah
- Tribal Settlements – Sahariya (dominant), Jatav, Brahmin, Gurjar, Kushwaha and Yadav.
- It falls under falls under Kathiawar-Gir dry deciduous forest eco-region.
- Vegetation – Kardhai, Khair and Salai trees.
Source: The Hindu
Which one of the following protected areas is well-known for the conservation of a sub-species of the Indian swamp deer (Barasingha) that thrives well on hard ground and is exclusively graminivorous?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2020 Prelims]
- Kanha National Park
- Manas National Park
- Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary
- Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary
