Cheetahs were declared extinct in India 70 years ago.
But the country has signed a new deal with Namibia to reintroduce the species to the forests of South Asia.
8 African cheetahs will be transferred from Namibia to India this month for captive breeding at the Kuno National Park (KNP) wildlife sanctuary, in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.
The sanctuary has a specific focus on site quality, abundant prey base and vast swaths of grasslands, and hopes to create a viable cheetah metapopulation in India that allows the cheetah to perform its functional role as a top predator, according to the Indian Environment Ministry.
It is estimated that just 7,000 cheetahs remain in the wild, and almost all of them are in Africa.
