Guwahati: On Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 72nd birthday, he released the first batch of Cheetahs at the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh.
The wild cats were brought from Namibia in a special arrangement to reintroduce them in India after being marked extinct for several years.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the animals into an enclosure spread over 10km.
During the release, he was accompanied by Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and wildlife experts.
Also Read: Sudarsan Pattnaik creates 5-feet sand sculpture to mark PM Modi’s 72nd Birthday
It may be mentioned that the cheetahs had gone extinct seven decades ago in 1952.
They were brought to India from southern Africa for reintroduction in India.
The cheetah is said to be one of the oldest big cat species having ancestors dating back about 8.5 million years.
It may be mentioned that while once they had a massive population across Asia and Africa, now around only 7000 remain in the wild.
Also Read: Cheetahs will make a comeback to India after 70 years
While it is the smallest among the big cats, it is also the fastest mammal on land.
The release of the big cats was termed to be one of the best gifts for the Prime Minister on his birthday.
Primarily eight cheetahs have been released in the reintroduction program but in later phases more are to be reintroduced.