India’s ambitious ‘Project Cheetah’ received yet another setback on Tuesday as one more feline Pawan died at the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, the forest official said.

Pawan (Indian name) was among eight cheetahs brought from Namibia on September 1, 2022, and they all were released at Kuno National Park (KNP) by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the occasion of his birthday.

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The male cheetah, Pawan, was found lying near the edge of a swollen nullah amidst bushes without any movement at around 10.30 AM on Tuesday, as per a statement issued by the office of the Additional Principal Chief Conservation of Forest (APCCF) and Director of Lion Project, Uttam Sharma.

“No external injuries were seen anywhere on the body. The exact reason for the death of Cheetah Pawan would be known after the autopsy, which is being conducted by a group of veterinarians, is done,” he added.

Sources told IANS that Pawan was found lying in a drain located in Morena district. Wildlife Activist Ajay Dube, who posted the news of Pawan’s death on his social media account, claimed that “Cheetah Pawan was found dead in a drain earlier in the day; however, KNP did not disclose it for the next few hours.”

He further said the death of the ‘strongest’ cheetah – Pawan – has raised many questions about the KNP and has also raised concern about the safety of other felines living there.

“Pawan was the strongest and fittest among other cheetahs. This was the reason he was set in an open forest to venture. It’s a big setback for the project, which is part of the investigation,” Dube added.

There have been several stances when the forest officials had to struggle with his location as he used to move out beyond the enclosure set for the cheetahs at KNP.

Importantly, this setback came at the time when some of the cheetahs, especially those that had adopted the KNP’s enclosure, were set to be released into open forest.

The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), which is the nodal agency for the ‘Project Cheetah’ recently held a meeting with top wildlife and forest officials associated with Kuno National Park in New Delhi.

The fitness of cheetah Pawan and his successful venturing into open forest areas was one of the main reasons the NTCA was planning to release some more big cats into open forests.

Pawan is the eight adult cheetah that died since 20 cheetahs were transported from Namibia and South Africa in two different phases between September 2022 and February 2023. Now, there are 24 cheetahs at Kuno – 12 adults and 12 cubs, born at the national park.

Under the translocation project, 20 cheetahs were brought to India in two batches – eight from Namibia in September 2022 and 12 from South Africa last February – of which seven have died until this January. The adult cheetahs gave birth to 17 cubs, of which 12 survived.