IndiaPosted at: Oct 5 2026 7:18PM


Indian-born cheetah gives birth to five cubs at Kuno, India’s cheetah population rises to 60

Parwinder Sandhu
New Delhi, Oct 5 (UNI) India’s cheetah conservation programme reached another significant milestone on Monday with KJP21, a 32-month-old Indian-born female cheetah, giving birth to five healthy cubs at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, taking the country’s total cheetah population to 60, including 41 Indian-born cheetahs.
The cheetah was declared extinct in India in 1952, making it the only large carnivore to have disappeared from the country in modern times.
After several decades, India launched Project Cheetah in September 2022 with the translocation of cheetahs from Namibia to Kuno National Park.
The first batch of eight Namibian cheetahs arrived at Kuno in September 2022. In February 2023, another group of 12 cheetahs from South Africa was brought to India, expanding the founder population.
The programme subsequently entered a new phase with the birth of the first Indian-born cheetah cubs in March 2023.
Since then, breeding has progressively expanded the population, with Kuno becoming the centre of India's efforts to establish a self-sustaining cheetah population.
Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav described the development as an important milestone in the emergence of the next generation of India’s cheetah population.
In a post on social media platform X, Yadav said KJP21 was the third Indian-born female cheetah to give birth, after Mukhi and KGP12. The birth is also significant from the genetic diversity perspective as the five cubs mark the beginning of the Botswana lineage in India.
Their father is a male cheetah from Botswana, adding a new genetic lineage to the country’s expanding cheetah population.
Yadav described the development as another generation of cheetahs being born on Indian soil and said it marked a new chapter in India’s cheetah reintroduction programme.
He congratulated the veterinarians, field staff, managers and all those associated with Project Cheetah, crediting their dedication and sustained efforts for the development.
The latest five births are particularly important because KJP21 herself was born in India, demonstrating that animals born after reintroduction are now entering the reproductive cycle.
With KJP21 becoming the third Indian-born female to reproduce, the programme is moving beyond simply establishing the founder population towards the emergence of successive generations.
The inclusion of the Botswana lineage is another important development.
The cheetahs brought to India under Project Cheetah have primarily originated from Namibia and South Africa.
The birth of cubs fathered by a Botswana-origin male therefore broadens the genetic representation within India's growing population.
The increase to 60 cheetahs, of whom 41 are Indian-born, also represents a substantial demographic shift from the original reintroduction population.
UNI PWS RN
Tags: #Indian-born cheetah gives birth to five cubs at Kuno# India’s cheetah population rises to 60
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