Author: Jotirmay Thapliyal
Publication: The Indian Affairs
Date: September 18, 2022
URL:      https://theindianaffairs.com/en/ten-sites-seven-landscapes-five-states-finding-home-for-cheetahs-was-not-all-that-easy/

Braving soaring temperatures, studying human behavior were also part of surveys

Bringing Cheetahs into India was not all that easy. Ten Sites from Seven Landscapes spread over Five states were surveyed in totality before the search zeroed down onto Kuno, where the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 17th Sept finally released the Cheetah, the fastest animal on earth.

Braving summer heat when temperatures soared to as high as 45 degrees, a team of young researchers took no chances to ensure that Cheetahs got their best available habitat in India. Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Gujarat were some of the states that were part of the ardous survey for housing Cheetahs.

Dehradun based Wildlife Institute of India that has been the brain behind conduct of this World’s First Inter Continental Large Carnivore Translocation Project was entrusted with the task of finding a suitable habitat for Cheetahs in India. Under the patronage of Conservationist MK Ranjitsinh and guidance of Yadvendradev Vikramsinh Jhala, a Senior Scientist at WII, teams of researchers were set up to look into possibilities of Cheetah reintroduction at the best possible habitat.

Team of Researchers worked day in and day out to find a suitable site to house these wild cats. One such researcher was Dr Hem Singh Gehlot, a conservationist and now a professor with Jai Narayan Vyas University in Jodhpur.

Recalling the tough days working as a researcher in 2010 in this key WII’s project – Assessing The Potential for Reintroducing Cheetah In India – Hem Singh asserted that it was a project that he would also remember through his life.

“We used to leave for the field at around 6 in the morning and after a hectic day’s work that would continue uptill sunset, we would compile our field notes during the evening hours. Working in forest areas was tough as the temperatures at times reached as high as 45 degrees during summers. The sweltering heat and humid conditions at times made us restless”, Hem Singh informed The Indian Affairs.  

Interaction with communities residing in the close periphery of these potential areas was also a key part of the survey. Various factors had to be looked into. The Anthropogenic pressure, the climate, the biodiversity and foremost the Prey Base were important parts of the survey. Even the researchers went to the extent of trying to assess the general behaviour vis-a-vis wildlife of the communities residing near these landscapes in order to check if there existed any wildlife poaching tendencies in them.

Research findings led to zeroing in on two sites, one at Kuno in Madhya Pradesh and other at Shahgarh Bulge in Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. Kuno National Park that has capacity to house as many as twenty cheetahs was finally selected.

It took a long time to realize the Cheetah project. But Hem Singh is a satisfied individual today as all his hard work has been fruitful after reintroduction of Cheetahs into India.  

-The writer has over two decades of experience in journalism that includes long stints with The Tribune and The Pioneer. Has acumen for political reporting. Keeps a passion for covering forests, wildlife and environment.