Gwalior

President Droupadi Murmu concluded her five-day visit to Madhya Pradesh on Monday, departing from Gwalior after visiting Kuno National Park, the country's first cheetah reintroduction site.

During her visit to Kuno on Sunday, the President toured the Cheetah Command and Control Centre, where officials briefed her on the monitoring and tracking systems being used to oversee the cheetah population.

Murmu also visited an exhibition highlighting the progress achieved under Project Cheetah, which aims to restore the species to India after its extinction in the country decades ago.

On Monday, she travelled from Kuno to Gwalior and later returned to New Delhi aboard an Indian Air Force aircraft. Mangubhai Patel, state ministers and senior officials were present at Gwalior Airport to bid her farewell.

Link to Botswana Cheetah Initiative

President Murmu's visit carried added significance as she had witnessed the symbolic donation of eight cheetahs from Botswana during her state visit there in November 2025. Those cheetahs were subsequently relocated to Kuno National Park in February 2026.

Project Cheetah

Launched on September 17, 2022, Project Cheetah represents India's effort to restore ecological balance through the reintroduction of the world's fastest land animal.

Kuno National Park in Sheopur district was selected as the reintroduction site due to its suitable habitat, adequate prey base and relatively low human disturbance.

The project has so far seen three major translocations:

• Eight cheetahs from Namibia in September 2022.
• A second batch from South Africa in February 2023.
• Eight cheetahs from Botswana in February 2026.

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Officials say the initiative reflects India's long-term commitment to biodiversity conservation and wildlife restoration.