A top Indian wildlife official has been fired after eight cheetahs died during a programme to transport them from Africa, raising concerns about the high-profile effort.
Asian cheetahs were declared extinct in India in 1952, but this year, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, their African relatives were reintroduced.
Eight cheetahs were brought in from Namibia, and then another 12 were brought in in February from South Africa, with Modi presideing over the initial arrivals’ release at the Kuno National Park in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
Wildlife authorities have attributed the deaths of eight cheetahs that have perished in the past four months to natural causes.
However, the state forest department on Monday said that Jasbir Singh Chauhan, the senior wildlife officer in Madhya Pradesh, had been removed from his position without providing a reason.
The move has been connected to the cheetah fatalities, according to Indian media reports, which cited people who said there were issues with the project’s administration.
In addition to three of the four cubs born since they arrived, five of the eight cheetahs who perished were translocated animals, which has raised additional questions among specialists about the project’s feasibility.
