MP: Water Sprinkled on Kuno Cheetahs Through Pipelines to Protect Them From Heat

Bhopal: A 13 km-long pipeline has been laid in the soft enclosures developed in the Kuno National Park (KNP) in Sheopur district in Madhya Pradesh to sprinkle water on 25 cheetahs, kept there, to protect them from heatwave in the current summer.

Water is drawn from Kuno river, which runs alongside the Palpur range, through solar pumps and supplied to the pipeline to ensure that the cheetahs are not affected by the heat wave, a senior forest officer of KNP told this newspaper on Thursday, unwilling to be quoted.

“We have made special arrangements to help the cheetahs in KNP deal with the torturous summer”, the forest officer said.

Besides, small water bodies have also been developed in the safe enclosures where the cheetahs are kept to make them available with adequate water sources, he said.

Kuno has recorded a maximum temperature of 48 degree Celsius in the current summer so far.

Last summer, three cheetah cubs died in Kuno due to heat related ailments.

“All the 25 cheetahs, including a couple which have been released in the wild, are healthy”, the forest officer said.

The Cheetahs, brought from Namibia and South Africa to KNP, have adapted well with their new home, the forest officer said.

Seven adult cheetahs and three cubs have died in the park for various reasons so far.

Meanwhile, Gandhi Sagar wildlife sanctuary in Mandsaur district in Madhya Pradesh is being developed to build it as the second home of cheetahs in the country.

“We are ready to receive cheetahs to their new home in the wildlife sanctuary. All the works undertaken for the purpose have been completed”, a forest officer of Mandsaur district said.

Sources said that the first batch of cheetahs may come to the Gandhi Sagar wildlife sanctuary by November this year.

The infrastructure in the wildlife sanctuary has been developed at a cost of Rs 17.20 crore to house the cheetahs being brought from the African countries.

Spread over a 64 sq km area, Gandhi Sagar wildlife sanctuary is located at a distance of 275 km from KNP.

The wildlife sanctuary is said to have a good prey base such as chitals (spotter deer) and antelopes.

Fencing of the wildlife sanctuary with wire has been completed, the forest officer said.