Bhopal: Too Many Cheetals At Kanha Put Pressure On Ecology

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The Kanha Tiger Reserve is dealing with a unique problem—a growing number of cheetals.

The increasing population of cheetals is creating ecological imbalance in the reserve. In view of this, the forest authorities had sent a proposal to the state government to shift a sizeable population of cheetals to some other places in April 2023.

The government has accepted the proposal and now, the officials concerned have started shifting the cheetals to other sanctuaries.

Director of Kanha Tiger Reserve SK Singh told Free Press that there is an abundant number of cheetals inside the tiger reserve and every year their population is increasing, which is exerting additional pressure on the ecology of the reserve.

“We have around 47,000 cheetals. On an average, around 10,000 take birth every year. Of them, even 50 % are killed by the tigers then also 5,000 cheetals are increasing every year,” he said.

As per the agreement, 500 cheetals each are supposed to be sent to Nauradehi Sanctuary, Kheoni Sanctuary (Dewas) and Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary (Mandsaur).

Recently, 27 cheetals were shifted to Nauradehi. This was the third time that cheetals were shifted to Nauradehi Sanctuary. So far, 72 cheetals have been shifted to Nauradehi.

An officer at Kanha Tiger Reserve said cheetals are caught using the BOMA method. When cheetals enter the BOMA (a type of big enclosure), they are caught and sent to other places. There is no specific date to catch and shift the cheetals. It is a continuous process, the official added.