Outcry over cheetah shooting at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh

Residents and members of the Kuno Struggle Committee staged a demonstration at the district collectorate in Sheopur on Wednesday to protest the fatal shooting of a cheetah within Kuno National Park. The incident has triggered wider concerns about wildlife management and security at the reserve.

The committee submitted a memorandum to the President's office seeking multiple investigations into the matter. Among their demands are a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the cheetah's death, action against forest officials allegedly negligent in their duties, and a high-level inquiry into reported illegal timber felling within the park's forests.

Activists have also called for an examination of organized poaching networks that may be operating in the area. The shooting death has raised questions about the adequacy of anti-poaching measures and surveillance systems at the national park, which was established as part of India's Project Cheetah reintroduction initiative.

Kuno National Park, spanning parts of Madhya Pradesh, has been a focal point of efforts to restore cheetah populations to Indian forests after the species was declared extinct in the country in the 1950s. The incident underscores ongoing concerns about wildlife security and administrative oversight at protected areas.