After three cheetahs died in just over a month last year in Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park, the National Tiger Conservation Authority called in experts from Reliance’s wildlife facility in Gujarat in May 2023 to review health monitoring protocols, official records show.
National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) Deputy Inspector General of Forests Abhishek Kumar wrote to the CEO of Reliance Industries’ Jamnagar-based Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (GZRRC) on May 11, 2023, requesting that a team of experts be sent to Kuno to “review health monitoring protocols” and provide advice to “ensure welfare of cheetahs” following the deaths of three spotted cats between March 27 and May 9.
Kumar’s letter said Project Cheetah was the first intercontinental reintroduction of a large, wild carnivore species “with no comparable historical precedent” and that it was not surprising that a project of such “magnitude and complexity would face many challenges.”
“Through careful planning and execution, all 20 cheetahs survived the initial capture, quarantine and long transport to the larger purpose-built quarantine and acclimatisation facility at Kuno. We understand that Greens Zoo Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre has experienced veterinarians who deal with a considerable number of cheetahs in captivity,” the letter, seen by PTI, reads.
GZRRC Director Brij Kishor Gupta responded on May 24, 2023, saying that a four-member team would visit Kuno on May 25 and 26.
The team included “senior veterinary officers” Jorge Francisco Soares and Nitin Yashwant Tambe, laboratory manager Mandeep and Gupta himself.
Responding to PTI’s query via email, Gupta said, “The National Tiger Conservation Authority had requested GZRRC last year to assess the healthcare protocols of cheetahs being followed at Kuno, we sent our team of veterinary experts and the director and found that they are following the correct protocol for handling healthcare of cheetahs.”
GZRRC experts visited Kuno only once, Gupta said, but did not give a clear answer on whether they were providing guidance or support to the project at that time.
GZRRC is also providing assistance to the Gujarat Forest Department in the conservation of Asiatic lions through its Asiatic Lion Care, Medical Research and Hospital.
Gupta said all forms of interaction, engagement and knowledge exchange undertaken by the GZRRC with government and non-government entities in the fields of animal welfare, research and conservation were carried out “strictly on a non-commercial basis”.
As part of the first intercontinental translocation of big cats, a total of 20 cheetahs (eight from Namibia in September 2022 and 12 from South Africa in February 2023) were brought to Kuno.
Since their arrival, eight adult cheetahs (three females and five males) have died. Seventeen cubs have been born in India, of which twelve have survived. This brings the total number of cheetahs, including cubs, in Kuno to 24, all of them in closed enclosures.
Three cheetahs, one male and two females, died between March 27 and May 9, 2023.
According to Project Cheetah’s annual report for 2023-24, Namibian female cheetah Sasha died due to “chronic kidney failure” on March 27, 2023, becoming the project’s first fatality.
“Sasha developed kidney problems after her arrival and received continuous care for two months but unfortunately did not respond positively to the treatment and passed away,” the annual report said.
Male South African cheetah Uday “suddenly died” on April 23, 2023, inside the largest acclimatization enclosure “without displaying any previous symptoms.” Female South African cheetah Daksha died on May 9, 2023, due to injuries sustained during a violent encounter with a coalition of males during a mating attempt, the report said.
The visit by GZRRC experts was immediately preceded by the death of three cubs born to Namibian cheetah Jwala between 23 and 25 May due to extreme heat.
Ajay Dubey, a Bhopal-based wildlife activist, questioned the need to involve GZRRC in the project when “leading wildlife experts from NTCA, Wildlife Institute of India, South Africa and Namibia are already part of it.”
“The government even sent staff from the Madhya Pradesh wildlife department to South Africa and Namibia for training in cheetah management. What did they learn?” he asked.
“Even if GZRRC has been approached, why keep it a secret? There is no mention in the annual report of Project Cheetah about the support sought for Reliance Industries’ wildlife conservation facilities,” he added.
The minutes of the Project Cheetah Monitoring Committee meetings, obtained by PTI through an RTI request, also make no mention of this involvement.
In addition to wildlife experts from NTCA, Wildlife Institute of India and other government facilities, Kuno currently has a dedicated team of four veterinarians for Project Cheetah.
She has also received veterinary support and guidance from wildlife veterinarians in South Africa and Namibia, including Adrian Tordiffe, Hospital Director of Onderstepoort Veterinary College, South Africa; Mike Toft of Kifaru Wildlife Veterinary Services, South Africa; Andy Fraser of Rooiberg Veterinary Services, South Africa; and Ana Basto of the Cheetah Conservation Fund, Namibia.
GZRRC director Gupta told PTI that they had rescued over 40 cheetahs from different captive facilities.
However, GZRRC’s 2023-24 annual report submitted to the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) says it acquired 56 cheetahs from South Africa and 15 from the UAE in 2023-24 alone.
Gupta said all the cheetahs were born in captivity in the captive facility’s home country. “To date, there have been no cheetah deaths at GZRRC” and all the animals “are doing very well.”
According to Gupta, Reliance’s facilities have “some of the best veterinarians in wildlife health management.”
He said the cheetah project was “going very well”. “Several cubs have been observed to be born on Indian soil and the survival rate is good compared to similar projects in other parts of the world.”
When asked about the challenges posed by cheetah management based on his experience, Gupta said, “GZRRC specializes in the study, management, care and research of cheetahs in captive environments. The primary focus areas for cheetahs in captivity include veterinary care, nutrition, housing, exercise and enrichment. GZRRC has successfully set optimal standards in all these domains.”
He stressed that “the operation and management of a captivity programme differ significantly from that of a wild species reintroduction programme.”
The CZA granted approval for the establishment of GZRRC on 14 February 2019 and granted it recognition on 17 August 2020.
According to GZRRC’s 2023-24 annual report, the facility spans 277 hectares and employs 20 veterinarians, seven biologists and more than 400 animal handlers to care for its 10,360 animals.
In 2023-24, new facilities such as Herbivore Rescue Centre, Asiatic Lion Care Centre, Medical Research Hospital, Cheetah Conservation and Research Centre, Vulture Conservation Breeding Centre and a multi-specialty hospital were added to the GZRRC.
(Only the headline and image of this report may have been reworked by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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