(a) whether Cheetah has become extinct in the country;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether the Supreme Court has allowed the Union Government to introduce African Cheetah to a suitable habitat in the country; and
(d) if so, the details thereof and the action taken by the Government thereon?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE
(SHRI BABUL SUPRIYO)
(a) and (b) Yes sir. The Cheetah has become extinct in the country.
(c) and (d) The Hon''ble Supreme Court vide order dated 28.01.2020 in I.A. no. 192/2017 in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 337/1995 has stated that "....African Cheetahs would be introduced on an experimental basis in a careful chosen habitat and nurtured and watched to see whether it can adapt to the Indian conditions. In case there are some difficulties noticed about the location in which it is introduced, we are informed that the location would be changed to another forest which is more habitable for the animals. It is not desirable that this action of introducing the African Cheetahs into India be left to the sole discretion of the NTCA but we consider it appropriate that NTCA be guided and directed by the Committee of Experts in the field who would carry out the survey for the best location for introducing the African Cheetahs in India and take a careful decision about the viability of introducing this animal on a larger scale. The expert committee shall also supervise the entire process and NTCA shall be guided to act in co-ordination with the expert committee.
The expert committee shall comprise the following members :
i. Dr. M.K. Ranjit Sinh (IAS Retd.), Former Director of Wildlife Preservation, India.
ii. Dr. Dhananjai Mohan, Chief Conservator of Forests, Wildlife Admn. Protection & Intelligence, Nainital, Uttarakhand.
iii. DIG (Wildlife) Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Government of India
The said expert committee shall submit a report to this Court every four months."
The National Tiger Conservation Authority, of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has constituted a Committee for implementation of the above directions.
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