In a video shared by news agency ANI, the first look of the cheetahs all set to fly to India today was revealed. In the video, three of the eight can be seen roaming in an open field before they embark on the journey that India is looking forward to. In a change of plan, the cheetahs will now arrive straight at Gwalior instead of Jaipur on Saturday, which is also PM Modi's birthday.
Earlier, it was decided that the Boeing carrying them from Namibia will land at Jaipur and from Jaipur, they will be flown to the Kuno National Park.
PM Modi will release them in the national park amid much fanfare for these will be the first cheetahs in the country after almost 70 years.
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{{/usCountry}}Cheetah Project Chief and Member Secretary National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) SP Yadav said the Prime Minister will release two cheetahs from enclosure number one and after that about 70 meters away, which is the second enclosure PM will release another cheetah. The remaining Cheetahs will be released in their respective quarantine areas made for them.
The Boeing will come directly to India without refuelling. Along with crew members, there will be some veterinary doctors, wildlife experts, cheetah experts and three Indian scientists, doctors and officers on the plane.
"Radio collar has been installed in all the cheetahs and will be monitored through satellite. Apart from this, there will be a dedicated monitoring team behind each cheetah who will keep monitoring location for 24 hours," Yadav said.