'Uninhibited and unchained': Jwala's 130-km dash puts India's wildlife corridor to test

Sheopur (Madhya Pradesh), Aug 13 (IANS) In a dramatic test of India’s newly established inter-state cheetah corridor, a free-ranging female cheetah named Jwala from Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park trekked nearly 130 km into Rajasthan’s Sawai Madhopur district before being safely rescued and returned.

The incident marks the first confirmed inter-state movement of a cheetah since the corridor’s creation, raising both ecological optimism and logistical concerns.

Jwala, who wears a radio collar for tracking, was first spotted on August 11 in the Manpur area of Sheopur district with her cub.

By the next day, she had separated from the cub and crossed the Chambal riverbanks, eventually reaching Baler village in Rajasthan, officials said.

Early on August 13, villagers discovered her inside a goat enclosure and alerted the Ranthambore Tiger Reserve (RTR) team.

Initial rescue attempts failed due to her aggressive behaviour, prompting RTR officials to call in the Kuno team.

The Kuno rescue team arrived by mid-morning and successfully tranquilised Jwala within 15 minutes, removing the goat kill to prevent human-wildlife conflict.

She was then transported back to Kuno National Park, where she rejoined the population of 26 cheetahs, including nine adults and 17 Indian-born cubs, a Madhya Pradesh government statement on Wednesday said.

Forest and police officials from both Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan coordinated with each other to ensure the safety of both the animal and local residents.

The Kuno management expressed gratitude for the support received during the operation.

This incident comes just months after Rajasthan was formally integrated into India’s first inter-state cheetah conservation corridor, which spans 17,000 square km across protected landscapes in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

The corridor aims to facilitate natural movement of cheetahs and restore grassland ecosystems. While the successful rescue highlights the corridor’s ecological potential, it also underscores the challenges of managing free-ranging predators in human-dominated landscapes.

Wildlife experts say such movements are a sign of healthy adaptation but call for enhanced monitoring and community awareness to prevent conflict.

--IANS

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