Cheetahs to get new home in Madhya Pradesh’s Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary. (Photo credit: Unsplash)
New Delhi: India is gearing up to welcome the third batch of Cheetahs before the end of this year. Unlike the last two batches of cheetahs that were translocated from Namibia and South Africa and housed at Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park (KNP), the third batch of cheetahs will get new adobes in Madhya Pradesh’s Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary.
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Brief about Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary
Spread over an area of 368.62 square kilometre, Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary is situated on the northern boundary of the Mandsaur and Nimach districts in Madhya Pradesh. Moreover, a part of the sanctuary falls in Rajasthan.
Lies in the heart of the Khathiar-Gir dry deciduous forest ecoregion, the sanctuary is divided into two parts by the Chambal River, a tributary of the Yamuna River in Central and Northern India. While the western part of the sanctuary falls in Nimach district, the eastern part falls in Mandsaur district.
The sanctuary was notified in 1974 and more areas were added to it in 1983. A year later, it was added to the list of sanctuaries in 1984.
Flora and fauna of the sanctuary
The forest of the Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary has a perfect blend of dry, mixed and deciduous vegetation.
Open throughout the year, the sanctuary has a varied terrain of wooded hills, that offers abundant opportunities of sighting a variety of wildlife.
Khair (Acacia catechu), Salai, Kardhai, Dhawda, Tendu, Palash etc. are some of the principal trees found in the sanctuary.
The sanctuary is well known for its diverse topography, which includes plateaus, hills and the catchment area of the Gandhi Sagar Dam erected on the Chambal River.
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Wildlife in the sanctuary
The forest area of the sanctuary is predominated by species of deer, of which the most easily sighted are the chinkara or Indian gazelle, sambar, or Nilgai. Additionally, the visitors can also witness some carnivorous animals, including the Indian leopard, wild dog, striped hyena, and jackal, among others.
Moreover, the sky of this sanctuary is ruled by numerous beautiful birds, including the Yellow-footed Green-Pigeon, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Indian Roller, Laughing Dove, Spotted Dove, Spilopelia chinensis, peacock and others.
While the swampy area is dominated by Mugger crocodiles, a part of it is overruled by otters and other amphibians and aquatic animals.
The trees are perfect habitat for numerous arboreal species, including monkeys, langurs and squirrels, among others.
Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary, To be the home of cheetahs
Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary was one of the two sites developed to welcome the upcoming batch of cheetahs. According to SP Yadav, Additional Director General of Forests at the Environment Ministry and the chief of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), the sanctuary is going to witness drastic transformation by the end of November or early December to provide suitable habitat to cheetahs.
