'Domesticated, maimed and hunted':  IFS officer shares cheetah-human relationship and cause of its extinction in 1952 through decades-old videos, pictures

Tribune Web Desk

Chandigarh, September 17

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday released eight cheetahs into the wilds of Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park. The wild cats made transcontinental flight for almost 12 hours to reach Gwalior airport from Namibia.

It’s nearly after eight decades when the wilds of the country would witness footprints of Cheetahs as the species got extinct back in 1952, when the Jawaharlal Nehru government proclaimed it.

Amid the grand welcome and nation-wide enthusiasm over retrieving an extinct species, an Indian Forest Officer, Parveen Kaswan has shared a long thread on Twitter, which chronicles human-cheetah relationship besides prevalent practices of poaching of latter by kings and Britishers during pre-independent era, leading to its extinction.

Kaswan has also shared decades-old photos and paintings showing cheetahs chained with dogs. Few other pictures show how the wild cats were used for hunting in ancient times.

He also shared how last lot of three cheetahs was hunted down by King of Koriya (Chhattisgarh) in 1947. The king can be seen standing beside the carcass in the picture shared by Kaswan.

About The Author

Tribune Web Desk

The Tribune Web Desk brings you the latest news, analysis and insights from the region, India and around the world. Follow the Tribune Wed Desk for not just breaking news stories but wide-ranging coverage of events.