BHOPAL: Eight cheetahs have been captured in Botswana in southern Africa ahead of their translocation to India under the cheetah reintroduction programme, launched in 2022 after the fastest land animal went extinct here decades ago, a senior forest official said.

The cheetahs, including two males, will be quarantined for a month and undergo a medical examination before being sent to India, the official told PTI, requesting anonymity.

"Inter-continental translocation involves several formalities. Considering these and the upcoming Christmas holidays, I can't say when the cheetahs will be flown to Kuno National Park in Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh; most probably in January," he added.

When contacted, Cheetah Project field director Uttam Sharma stated that the matter was being handl

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