Madhya Pradesh's tableau at Republic Day parade to showcase Project Cheetah

Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh's tableau for the Republic Day function in New Delhi this year will have the ambitious cheetah reintroduction project as its theme, an official said on Thursday.

The big cats were declared extinct in the country seven decades ago. To revive their population, 20 cheetahs -- 8 from Namibia and 12 from South Africa -- were brought to the Kuno National Park (KNP) in MP's Sheopur district in September 2022 and February 2023, respectively, as part of the reintroduction project.

"The theme of the state's tableau is 'Cheetah -The Pride of India'. It will showcase (dummies of) more than 10 cursorial animals with a couple in a natural habitat," MP Public Relations Department joint director Sanjay Saxena told PTI over phone.

"Madhya Pradesh is displaying its historic achievement of the reintroduction of cheetahs. Their number (in KNP) has swelled to 24," said Saxena, who is also the nodal officer for the state's tableau.

Madhya Pradesh's tableau is among the tableaux of 15 states picked for the colourful event, he said.

Last year, MP's tableau was based on women empowerment, the New Delhi-based official said.

The state's tableau has been picked for the Republic Day function for the second day in a row, he added.

Cheetah, the world's fastest land animal, was declared extinct in India in 1952. The last cheetah died in Korea district of the present-day Chhattisgarh, once part of MP, in 1947.

To revive their population, 20 cursorial animals -- 8 from Namibia and 12 from South Africa -- have been brought to the KNP.

As of now, there are 24 cheetahs, including 12 cubs, in the KNP, according to officials