Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The officials at Kuno National Park were earlier keen to enroll villagers as Cheetah Mitra. Now, they only want to make people aware about cheetahs.
Divisional Forest Officer Prakash Kumar Verma told Free Press that large number of people wanted to become Cheetah Mitra but not many were fit for the job as they should be enlightened people who could act as a bridge between KNP and masses in spreading awareness about cheetahs.
At present, there are 600 Cheetah Mitra around Kuno National Park. A Cheetah Mitra calendar has been prepared based on which activities are organised everyday. There are reports that a former bandit had become a Cheetah Mitra.
Notably, much before eight Namibian cheetahs arrived at Kuno National Park, authorities embarked on Cheetah Mitra campaign. Under this, forest officials visited villages to tell people that cheetahs don’t harm human beings unless provoked.
According to sources, Namibian expert Bart is staying at Kuno National Park and is keeping a close watch on activities of cheetahs kept in quarantine enclosure since September 17.
