A ray of hope emerged for Rajasthan after the Madhya Pradesh government asked the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) to find a second home for cheetahs because experts believed Kuno may not be able to support more than 15 of the wild cats. Rajasthan was deemed to be the second-best suitable habitat by the wildlife institute of India experts. In order to put the rumours to rest, senior forest authorities stated that the state government was not exploring any proposals to bring cheetahs to Rajasthan.  

“There is no correspondence happening between the state and the centre now to bring cheetahs to Rajasthan.” - A senior forest official

“As per recent reports of WII experts, there is not enough prey in Kuno. There are approximately 20 spotted deer, main prey of cheetahs, are available per square kilometer in the KNP. It was approximately 55 spotted deer per kilometer nearly eight years ago. It was considered that the prey base is sufficient for 12-14 out of 20 animals and there was a requirement to shift remaining cheetahs. Mukundra is the most suitable site as it is fenced and safe. Earlier, Rajasthan showed lack of interest in bringing cheetahs, however, in 2022 wrote to the NTCA and accepted the offers. But, after this centre was not in a mood.” - Official 

  Source: Times Of India