Highlight
- The Cheetah Reproduction Project is set to welcome cheetahs on September 17, 2022.
- IOC is the first and only corporate to come forward to support ‘Project Cheetah’ through CSR.
- The last three Asiatic cheetahs were hunted in 1948 and were declared extinct in 1952.
India’s top oil company IOC will provide Rs 50.22 crore for the ambitious trans-continental relocation of cheetahs from Africa to India, the company said on Tuesday. Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has signed an MoU with the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) to meet two-thirds of the project cost of Rs 75 crore. The project is set to welcome the first cheetahs on Indian soil after more than seven decades on September 17, 2022,” the company said in a statement.
IOC is the first and only corporate to come forward to support ‘Project Cheetah’ through CSR. Under this project, a source population of 15-20 cheetahs from Namibia and South Africa will be brought to the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh. IOC will contribute Rs 50.22 crore over five years for the reintroduction of the cheetah as well as for its habitat management and conservation, ecological development, staff training and veterinary health care. The cheetah population in India declined during the 19th century, largely due to rampant hunting by local kings and ruling British officials.
The last three Asiatic cheetahs were hunted in 1948 and in 1952 the cheetah was declared extinct in the country. The subspecies of cheetah that became extinct in India was the Asiatic cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus) and the subspecies being introduced into the country is African. Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus). Research has shown that the genes of both these subspecies are similar. On 2 August, the IOC said that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with the NTCA for the transcontinental relocation of cheetahs to the historic region in India.
The MoU was signed by IOC Chairman SM Vaidya and SP Yadav, Additional. Director General (Project Tiger) and Member Secretary (NTCA). Reflecting IOC’s commitment to strongly support this ambitious ecological project, Vaidya said the Cheetah Introduction project is in line with the company’s priority to conserve India’s natural habitat and heritage. “Our mascot, the now famous IndianOil Rhino, stands as testimony to that commitment,” he said.
Read also: 8 cheetahs to reach MP’s Kuno National Park from Namibia on September 17
Read also: First batch of 12 cheetahs from South Africa likely to reach India in October