An ambitious plan to establish a 17,000 sq km cheetah corridor, designed to allow the animals to roam freely between Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, has been put on hold. Officials in Madhya Pradesh have decided to prioritise stabilising the cheetah population within their own state first.
Wildlife officials had initially sought to create a corridor to provide a large, protected habitat, acknowledging that cheetahs are known to cover significant distances.
Ashok Barnwal, Additional Chief Secretary (Forest), confirmed the decision stating, "We have currently put the MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) with the Government of Rajasthan on hold. This is because we want to first ensure that the cheetah population in Madhya Pradesh stabilises and grows. Only after this is achieved will we move forward with the project with the Rajasthan government.”
A senior wildlife official from Rajasthan said their state was still waiting for Madhya Pradesh to sign the MoU. "In June, we expected to hear from the MP government, and they communicated to us that it would not proceed currently due to unprecedented circumstances. Then, we wrote another letter to know the status of the MoU just a week ago and are awaiting their reply."
According to a senior Madhya Pradesh wildlife official, a key concern was the possibility that cheetahs crossing into Rajasthan might not return to their home state. Cheetahs have already ventured into Rajasthan multiple times in the last two years. A recent incident on August 12 involved a female cheetah named Jwala, who had to be rescued under challenging conditions from Kareera Kalan village in Rajasthan's Sawaimadhopur district. The animal was darted amidst a large crowd of onlookers.
The official explained, "Cheetahs are free-ranging animals, and the long-term plan is that they move to other states in India, discover a new prey base and populate. This is what happened under Project Tiger, too... But, right now, there is a fear that the cheetahs may not return, hence we are focusing on increasing the cheetah population."
The proposed corridor was intended to link Palpur Kuno National Park and Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh with the Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan. The plan involved integrating seven districts in Rajasthan— Kota, Bundi, Baran, Jhalawar, Sawai Madhopur, Karauli, and Chittorgarh. Madhya Pradesh’s portion of the corridor would have covered 10,500 square kilometres, with Rajasthan’s encompassing 6,500 square kilometres.
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