Cheetah cub dies after being hit by vehicle on highway in Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior

A male cheetah cub, that ventured out of the Kuno National Park (KNP), died after being hit by an unidentified vehicle on a highway in Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior district early on Sunday, police said.

The incident occurred on the Agra-Mumbai National Highway in the Ghatigaon area, close to the Shivpuri district border, 35 to 40 km from here, Gwalior Zone Inspector General of Police Arvind Saxena told PTI over the phone.

The nearly 20-month-old cub had strayed out of KNP and got separated from its mother. It died after being hit by an unidentified vehicle, he said.

A member of the police probe team said they have got some leads about a car suspected of having hit the cheetah.

“We have reduced traffic and curtailed speed on the highway to prevent any untoward incident, as another male cub separated from the same mother might still be around. Both were earlier spotted together,” Saxena said.

“The other cub was safe,” State Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Subharajan Sen said.

He said the dead cub was the offspring of "Gamini", a cheetah imported from South Africa to help revive India’s big cat population, which lost the world’s fastest animal seven decades ago.

In March, cheetah Gamini and her four cubs (two male and as many females) were released in the Khajuri forest area of KNP, officials earlier said.

A cheetah cub was found dead on Friday, a day after being released into the wild at KNP.