Watch | Four cubs, newborns of Cheetah brought from Namibia, yawn lazily

One of the eight cheetahs that were introduced to India from Namibia in September last year has given birth to four cubs, a video of which is now capturing hearts on social media.Last year on September 17, the new guests arrived from Namibia at the Kuno National Park in the state of Madhya Pradesh (MP) in central India.

Cheetahs were declared extinct in India in the year 1952. This inter-continental large wild carnivore translocation project, the first in the world, was carried out to reintroduce this fastest land animal back in India.

As part of this Project Cheetah, a total of five females and three males were introduced at the National Park which is located in MP's Sheopur district.

Indian Union Minister for Environment Bhupender Yadav shared a video on his social media handle where he posted a video of the four cubs born to one of the cheetahs. He called this a "momentous event" in the wildlife conservation history of India during Amrit Kaal, the 75 years of India's independence.

In the video, the Cheetah cubs can be seen yawning. While sharing the video on Twitter, the minister wrote, "Congratulations India. A momentous event in our wildlife conservation history during Amrit Kaal! I am delighted to share that four cubs have been born to one of the cheetahs translocated to India on 17th September 2022, under the visionary leadership of PM Shri Narendra Modi ji."

"I congratulate the entire team of Project Cheetah for their relentless efforts in bringing back cheetahs to India and for their efforts in correcting an ecological wrong done in the past," he added in a separate tweet.

In a sad moment on Monday, one of the five female cheetahs Sasha that arrived in India in September died due to a kidney infection.

Sasha displayed signs of weakness and exhaustion and after running a medical diagnosis she was found to be dehydrated. A blood test suggested high creatinine levels and a kidney illness.

“Sadly, Sasha succumbed to renal failure. She was under the care of Project Cheetah veterinarians for a few months, so this was not unexpected. Kidney disease and renal failure are a problem for all cats, but this can be especially bad for cheetahs, which are by nature delicate creatures," said Dr Laurie Marker, Founder and Executive Director for Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF).

Sasha, an orphan, was saved by the Cheetah Conservation Fund before being transferred to India as part of the Cheetah programme. However, on a positive note, the reports said the other cheetahs in the park are in good health condition.

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