PRESIDENT OF INDIA VISITS KUNO NATIONAL PARK

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PRESIDENT OF INDIA VISITS KUNO NATIONAL PARK — UPSC STUDY NOTE

1. At a Glance

• President Droupadi Murmu visited Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh on June 21, 2026, touring the Cheetah Management Area and receiving a briefing from the Divisional Forest Officer on Project Cheetah. [S1]
• Project Cheetah is the world's first inter-continental translocation of a large carnivore, aimed at reversing the extinction of the cheetah in India. [S3]
• Relevant across GS-II (governance), GS-III (biodiversity, conservation), and India's bilateral diplomacy (Namibia, South Africa, Botswana). This topic is a perennial Prelims favourite and a live Mains case study on conservation governance.
• As of May 2026, India hosts 53 cheetahs, of which 33 are India-born — a benchmark in rewilding success globally. [S4]

2. Why in the News

• June 21, 2026: President Droupadi Murmu visited Kuno National Park, making it a headline event that refreshes attention on Project Cheetah's progress. [S1]
• February 28, 2026: Union Minister for Environment Bhupender Yadav released 9 cheetahs from Botswana (6 females, 3 males) into quarantine enclosures at Kuno — the third and most recent batch of translocations. [S2]
• November 2025: During President Murmu's state visit to Botswana, she witnessed the symbolic donation of 8 cheetahs by Botswana to India. [S1]
• April–May 2026: An Indian-born female cheetah gave birth to 4 cubs in the wild — the first recorded wild birth by an India-born cheetah since reintroduction. [S5]

3. Background & Evolution

• Extinction in India: Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) was declared extinct in India in 1952; last confirmed sighting in Koriya district, Chhattisgarh (then MP).
• Early planning: The "Action Plan for Introduction of Cheetah in India" was formulated under MoEFCC, laying the scientific and legal groundwork for translocation. [S6]
• Supreme Court involvement: The Supreme Court of India had earlier directed a study on feasibility; the Court ultimately cleared the reintroduction plan.
• September 17, 2022: Project Cheetah formally launched; PM Narendra Modi released 8 African cheetahs from Namibia into Kuno National Park — first batch. [S3]
• February 2023: 12 cheetahs from South Africa translocated to Kuno — second batch. [S3]
• September 2023 (1-year mark): Government commemorated one year of Project Cheetah; reported initial mortalities attributed to natural causes per NTCA. [S7]
• February 28, 2026: 9 cheetahs from Botswana (6F + 3M) — third batch — released into quarantine at Kuno. [S2]
• June 21, 2026: Presidential visit to Kuno underscores political and conservation significance of the project. [S1]

4. Core Static Facts

5. Multi-Dimensional Analysis

Environmental / Biodiversity

• Cheetah, as an apex predator of open grasslands, serves as a keystone species regulating prey populations (chital, nilgai) and restoring trophic cascades in Kuno's semi-arid savanna ecosystem. [S3]
• Project Cheetah explicitly targets restoration of open forests and grasslands — habitats under threat from encroachment and fire suppression — alongside cheetah recovery. [S3]
• India-born wild births (Mukhi's 5 cubs; unnamed female's 4 cubs as of 2026) signal self-sustaining population potential, reducing dependence on further translocation. [S4][S5]
• Initial mortality incidents (2023) raised scientific debate on acclimatisation protocols; NTCA attributed deaths to natural causes (injury, disease), leading to enhanced veterinary monitoring. [S7]

Geopolitical / Strategic

• Project Cheetah is embedded in bilateral wildlife diplomacy: MoUs with Namibia (first source) and South Africa; Botswana donation mediated through a state visit by the President in November 2025 — a soft-power instrument in Africa engagement. [S1][S2]
• Positions India as a global leader in mega-fauna rewilding alongside celebrated cases (wolf reintroduction in Yellowstone, USA; lynx reintroduction in Europe).
• Engagement with Botswana aligns with India's broader Africa outreach under the Voice of Global South framework.

Scientific / Technological

• Uses GPS/satellite radio collars for continuous real-time monitoring; data feeds into the NTCA's cheetah monitoring dashboard.
• Soft-release protocol: cheetahs are placed in large fenced Cheetah Management Area (acclimatisation) before full wild release — adapted from South African rewilding best practices.
• The African cheetah (not the critically endangered Asiatic subspecies) was selected on genetic and logistical grounds — a scientifically contested but pragmatically justified choice.

Legal / Constitutional

• Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 governs reintroduction; Schedule I status gives cheetah the highest protection tier once in India.
• Supreme Court of India originally restricted the project (2013 order favouring Asiatic cheetah from Iran); a subsequent order cleared the way for African cheetah translocation, reflecting judicial oversight of conservation decisions.
• Project operated under Project Tiger Act / NTCA mandate — demonstrating the institutional model of NTCA being applied beyond tigers.

Administrative / Governance

• NTCA (under MoEFCC) leads; Madhya Pradesh Forest Department implements on ground via the Divisional Forest Officer — demonstrating Centre-State cooperative federalism in wildlife management. [S1]
• Village relocation from core Kuno area was a prior prerequisite; residual human-wildlife conflict remains a governance challenge.
• Mortality oversight: NTCA formed expert committees and engaged veterinary professionals after 2023 deaths — illustrating adaptive management governance.

Historical

• India's last native cheetahs were hunted by Maharaja Ramanuj Pratap Singh Deo of Koriya in 1947; formal extinction declared 1952.
• Reintroduction reverses a 70-year absence — longest gap for any large carnivore reintroduced globally via translocation.

6. Recent Developments (last 12–18 months)

• November 2025: President Droupadi Murmu's state visit to Botswana; Botswana's government symbolically donated 8 cheetahs to India. [S1]
• December 2025: PIB released comprehensive status report "Roaring Revival: The Return of the Cheetah"; cheetah count at 30 (12 adults, 9 sub-adults, 9 cubs). [S8]
• February 28, 2026: 9 Botswana cheetahs (6F + 3M) physically arrived at Kuno; released into quarantine enclosures by Union Minister Bhupender Yadav. [S2]
• April–May 2026: Indian-born female cheetah gave birth to 4 cubs in the wild — historic first wild birth by an India-born female. [S5]
• May 2026: Total cheetah population at Kuno reaches 53, with 33 India-born individuals; Mukhi (first India-born cheetah) has produced 5 cubs of her own. [S4]
• June 21, 2026: President Murmu personally visits Kuno; tours Cheetah Management Area; receives briefing from Divisional Forest Officer. [S1]

7. Prelims Hooks (high-density factual bullets)

1. Project Cheetah was launched on September 17, 2022 at Kuno National Park by PM Narendra Modi. [S3]
2. Implementing agency is the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. [S1]
3. Kuno National Park is located in Sheopur district, Madhya Pradesh. [S3]
4. The first batch comprised 8 cheetahs from Namibia (September 2022); the second was 12 from South Africa (February 2023). [S3]
5. The third batch was 9 cheetahs from Botswana — 6 females and 3 males — released on February 28, 2026. [S2]
6. Project Cheetah is the world's first inter-continental translocation of a large carnivore. [S3]
7. The long-term target is 60–70 cheetahs across 17,000 km² in the Kuno–Gandhi Sagar landscape by 2032. [S4]
8. Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary (Madhya Pradesh) is earmarked as the second reintroduction site. [S4]
9. Cheetah was declared extinct in India in 1952; the species translocated is Acinonyx jubatus jubatus (African cheetah), not the Asiatic cheetah. [S3]
10. As of May 2026, India has 53 cheetahs, of which 33 are India-born. [S4]
11. Mukhi — the first cheetah born on Indian soil — has herself given birth to 5 cubs, making her a second-generation breeder. [S4]
12. The President witnessed Botswana's symbolic cheetah donation during her November 2025 state visit to Botswana. [S1]
13. The species is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List globally; the Asiatic subspecies (A. j. venaticus) is Critically Endangered.
14. NTCA attributed early 2023 cheetah mortalities to natural causes after a preliminary analysis. [S7]
15. The Cheetah Management Area within Kuno serves as the fenced acclimatisation and soft-release zone. [S1]

8. Mains Relevance

GS Papers: - GS-II: Government policies and interventions for conservation; bilateral relations (India-Botswana, India-Namibia, India-South Africa); role of constitutional bodies (President's role in diplomacy). - GS-III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation; biodiversity and its conservation; rewilding as a conservation strategy.

Syllabus Headings: - Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation (GS-III) - Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India's interests (GS-II) - Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India (GS-II)

Plausible Mains Questions: 1. "Project Cheetah is often cited as a landmark in conservation governance. Critically examine its design, achievements, and challenges in the context of India's broader wildlife conservation framework." (GS-III, 15 marks) 2. "How has wildlife diplomacy emerged as a dimension of India's bilateral relations with African nations? Use Project Cheetah as a case study." (GS-II, 10 marks) 3. "Rewilding of large carnivores presents both ecological opportunities and socio-economic trade-offs. Discuss with reference to the cheetah reintroduction programme in India." (GS-III, 15 marks)

9. Related Topics to Study Next

10. Common Errors / Trap Areas

1. Wrong species: Candidates confuse the reintroduced African cheetah (A. j. jubatus) with the Asiatic cheetah (A. j. venaticus). The latter was considered but rejected; it remains in Iran and is Critically Endangered — not in India.
2. Wrong ministry: NTCA is under MoEFCC, not the Ministry of Forests (no separate ministry). Some candidates write "Ministry of Wildlife" — no such ministry exists.
3. Launch date confusion: September 17, 2022 is the launch of Project Cheetah AND PM Modi's birthday — examiners exploit this coincidence. The date is specific to the Namibian batch release.
4. Botswana batch size: Botswana symbolically donated 8 cheetahs (as witnessed by the President in Nov 2025), but 9 actually arrived at Kuno on February 28, 2026 — candidates must not conflate the symbolic number with the actual batch.
5. Extinction year: Some sources cite 1947 (last hunting) and others 1952 (formal declaration of extinction). The officially accepted year is 1952. Do not write 1947 in answers.

11. Sources

• [S1] "President of India Visits Kuno National Park" — PIB Press Release, June 21, 2026 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2276382 — (Tier 1)
• [S2] "Union Environment Minister Shri Bhupender Yadav welcomes 9 Cheetahs from Botswana, at Kuno National Park" — PIB, February 2026 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2233898 — (Tier 1)
• [S3] "PM releases wild Cheetahs in Kuno National Park" — PIB, September 17, 2022 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1860055 — (Tier 1)
• [S4] "Project Cheetah: India's Landmark Wildlife Restoration Initiative Shows Strong Progress and Promising Future" — PIB, 2026 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2262834 — (Tier 1)
• [S5] "Indian-born Female Cheetah at Kuno National Park gives Birth to Four Cubs in the Wild" — PIB — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2251144 — (Tier 1)
• [S6] "Action Plan for Introduction of Cheetah in India" — PIB — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1788373 — (Tier 1)
• [S7] "Preliminary analysis of Cheetah mortalities at Kuno National Park point to natural causes: NTCA" — PIB — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1939948 — (Tier 1)
• [S8] "Roaring Revival: The Return of the Cheetah" (December 12, 2025 status report) — PIB/static — https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2025/dec/doc20251212728901.pdf — (Tier 1)