The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has clarified recent media reports about the movement of cheetahs from Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh to Baran in Rajasthan, describing it as a natural territorial behavior.
According to NTCA, the cheetahs’ movement, tracked between Mangrol range and the Banjh Amli Conservation Reserve, reflects the animals’ long-distance dispersal tendencies across landscape boundaries. This behavior is accounted for in the Project Cheetah Action Plan, which anticipates inter-state movement within the Kuno-Gandhi Sagar metapopulation landscape.
The body highlighted the importance of the proposed 17,000 sq. km Kuno-Gandhi Sagar wildlife corridor that links districts in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Cheetahs KP-2 and KP-3, monitored round the clock via GPS and radio collars, cover a distance of 60 to 70 km and are separated by the Parvati River. The NTCA is actively coordinating with state forest departments.
(With inputs from agencies.)