New Delhi: Union Minister Environment and Forest Minister Bhupender Yadav on Wednesday shared the news of the birth of three cubs by Namibian Cheetah Aasha at the Kuno National Park located in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur district.

The minister said he was thrilled to announce that the Namibian Cheetah Aasha gave birth to the cubs and called the addition of the new members to the national park “a roaring success for Project Cheetah.”

Yadav congratulated all experts involved in the project, the Kuno wildlife officials, and wildlife enthusiasts across India.

More than a year has passed since the relocation of 20 cheetahs from Namibia and South Africa to Kuno National Park on September 17, 2022. Unfortunately, six of them have succumbed since March 2023.

On September 17, 2022, the cheetah arrived at Kuno National Park in a crate labeled "Aasha – The Hope."

According to an Indian Express report, this cheetah has exhibited resilience and is reported to be a confident animal, having covered a distance of over 200 km since being reintroduced into the wild in March of the previous year.

At the project's outset, wildlife officials suspected that Aasha might be pregnant following an encounter with a male cheetah named Pawan on February 1 of the preceding year. Although both Aasha and Pawan were together until March 11, officials reported that she did not give birth to any cubs, according to the report.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Aseem Shrivastava told The Indian Express, “Aasha is currently in a larger enclosure and is being monitored by a team. She is totally wild in nature and is taking care of the cubs. We had our suspicions that she may have been pregnant; it was confirmed today after photographic evidence.”