Last year in September, on the PM’s birthday, eight African cheetahs were moved all the way from Namibia to Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh. Despite the controversy and objections from experts, it was a source of braggadocio for Modi and his political cohorts. Over time, however, the Namibian cheetahs have begun to exhibit their innate behaviour, demonstrating exactly why the Central Government should have listened to the ecologists and conservationists.
Following their move to India, the cheetahs have been quarantined and moved into closed enclosures within the park. They’ve had their ups and downs- one of the females died of a kidney infection and another gave birth to a litter of four. One of the major concerns was the space constraint; a single cheetah requires about 100 sq kms of territory, while the total area of Kuno National Park is only 748 sq kms. This concern has only become more pronounced since twelve more cheetahs were translocated from South Africa last February. Plus, African cheetahs need an antelope every third day to survive. This is a prey base that Indian grassland habitats cannot provide. Oban and Asha, two released cheetahs, ventured into nearby villages, causing alarm among residents. In response, forest officials administered traumatic tranquilizer darts to the animals. Conservationists anticipated such conflicts due to unfamiliarity of the locals, predicting long-term issues with the success of the move.
A critical weakness of the programme is that African cheetahs are alien to this ecosystem. The Asiatic cheetahs that were hunted to extinction in India seven decades ago are now only found in Iran. In the late 1970s, former PM Indira Gandhi had signed an agreement with Iran to exchange Asiatic lions for Asiatic cheetahs. But this agreement never came to be due to political instability in Iran.
However, even the Asiatic cheetahs in Iran are a subspecies of those that were found in India and only about two dozen of them are alive now. In 2013, the Supreme Court quashed the order of the Ministry of Environment and Forests to introduce African cheetahs into Kuno, stating that African cheetahs were a species foreign to India and that translocation would not be ethical. In 2018, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) filed an application seeking permission, once again, to introduce Namibian cheetahs to India. A report was also submitted by Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India (WII) which stated that cheetahs could co-exist with humans, survive on a low prey base, and do not need vast grasslands. Wildlife conservationists disagreed with this, as they did in 2013. However, this time, the Supreme Court allowed for the cheetah introduction programme in 2020. WII along with the NTAC now head the Rs. 90 crore cheetah introduction programme. It is also interesting to note that Kuno National Park was chosen by WII as well. Despite the legal theatrics and the inept attempt at conservation, what truly matters is the lives of the indigenous people of the forests of Kuno who have been displaced to create suitable habitat for the cheetahs, particularly the Sahariya people.
Such displacements are not new; these carry the colonial notion of conservation efforts to prioritize wildlife over the lives of indigenous communities. The Sahariya tribe had already experienced displacement in the 1990s to make way for the reintroduction of the Asiatic lion.The cheetah project is thus a continuation of their displacement, deepening the cycle of dispossession and marginalisation. About 1650 families of the Sahariya tribe were moved out of their homes in 28 villages, in order to make space for the Asiatic lion. The Gujarat government at that point in time, resisted the relocation, since it would make the Gir Sanctuary lose its status as the world’s only home of the Asiatic lion. A decade later, came the cheetahs. Once again, the people suffered. Prof. Asmita Kabra, a conservation displacement expert, said that the human and economic costs of displacement are significant in Kuno. Her research in Bagcha in 2004 showed that the village income from marketable forest products and agriculture would stop as well.
The policies undertaken by the Modi government have significantly impacted local communities. While some aim at development, infrastructure, or conservation on paper, be it dams, mining, highways, deforestation etc., they always result in displacement, disruption of livelihoods, and social tensions. Protected areas, like national parks, have displaced tribes such as the Baiga and Soligas, while implementation challenges of the Forest Rights Act hinder community land rights. Tiger reserves and eco-tourism schemes clash with indigenous communities. Compensation and rehabilitation for the displaced often fall short.
The cheetah reintroduction project in Kuno National Park is a stark example of how conservation initiatives can overlook the impact on local and indigenous communities. The cycle of displacement and marginalization that these communities face is a testament to the urgent need for conservation efforts that prioritize both ecological restoration and social justice. These concerns often remain unaddressed and the price continues to be paid by those who can least afford it. When the state’s conservation endeavours often trample upon the rights of local communities, a resounding call for solidarity must emerge. The heart-wrenching tales of displacement, shattered livelihoods, and cultural erosion serve as potent reminders of the urgent need for united resistance against these top-down agendas. These are not isolated incidents but part of a broader agenda with such invasions being a part of the loot of jal-jangal-jameen.
