Cheetah rescued near Banmore and returned to Kuno National Park

A cheetah from Kuno National Park was rescued after reaching the Banmore industrial area in Morena district and was returned to the park. The animal had reportedly been seen in rural areas near Noorabad and in Banmore over the preceding two days. It was spotted near the gate of a factory on Friday morning.

A team from Kuno tracked and rescued the cheetah using a tracking system. No person was injured. The source identifies one cheetah and does not report any other cheetahs being rescued in this incident.

Notable Points

• Kuno resettlement, 1998–2003: Between 1998 and 2003, about 1,650 people from 24 villages were resettled outside Kuno’s protected area. Most of the resettled residents were Saharia tribal people.
• Cheetah introduction and oversight: In 2020, the Supreme Court permitted a trial introduction of Southern African cheetahs and appointed a three-member committee to guide the National Tiger Conservation Authority, with progress reports due every four months. The first cheetahs brought from Namibia in 2022 were radio-collared and held in quarantine before planned releases.
• Cheetah movement beyond Kuno’s core area: During the project period, Namibian scientists cited typical African cheetah territories of about 100 square kilometres and questioned whether Kuno’s core area could sustain 20 cheetahs. They warned that animals might move into adjoining farmland and non-forested areas.