As the door of its cage slid open, the first of the eight cheetahs brought to Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park hesitated for a moment or two before stepping out onto the grass.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday hit out at the previous governments, saying that no constructive efforts were made to reintroduce cheetahs in India after they became extinct from the country seven decades ago.
A modified Boeing aircraft carried the cheetahs in special wooden crates during the around 10-hour journey.
Sri Lanka, who won the T20 World Cup in 2014, have two warm-up games in Melbourne before they begin their World Cup campaign with a qualifying match against Namibia on October 16.
Cheetah will have to spend their entire air transit period empty stomach, a senior Indian forest department official said on Tuesday.
The 16 skippers made history, coming together in Melbourne for the first time at a T20 World Cup.
Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka said winning the Asia Cup will help the team's preparation for next month's Twenty20 World Cup.
He expressed hope the project will increase tourist footfalls and boost employment generation opportunities for people of the region.
India will face defending champions Australia and New Zealand in their ICC T20 World Cup warm-up games on October 17 and October 19 respectively.
For some teams, this will be the start of their quest for World Cup glory but for others, it will be the culmination of what has already been a long journey.
All the eight cheetahs looked fit and fine and drank water kept at their quarantine enclosure in the KNP.
Amid the excitement over the arrival of Cheetahs in the Kuno National Park, villagers in the surrounding areas of Madhya Pradesh's Sheopur district have a variety of concerns including the fear of land acquisition and the fear of the big cat itself.
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday dubbed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's move to release Cheetahs in a Madhya Pradesh national park as a 'tactic to divert attention' from the grand old party's 'immensely successful' 'Bharat Jodo Yatra'.
The large carnivore got completely wiped out from India due to their use for coursing, sport hunting, over-hunting and habitat loss.
A team of wildlife experts from South Africa returned to their country on Friday from India where they inspected the holding facility where the cheetahs will be released.
The 22-year-old from Assam finished third in semifinal 2 with a timing of 23.42 seconds.
Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus lamented the inability to execute plans with the ball in the death overs, saying it cost his side the T20 World Cup Super 12s match against New Zealand, in Sharjah, on Friday. He was, however, hopeful of an improved show against India in the teams' concluding league fixture.
Former Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan received a guard of honour from Namibia's players as he walked out to bat in his final match for the country, in the T20 World Cup game in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.
Debutants Namibia got themselves out of a difficult situation in a low-scoring game to record a memorable four-wicket win over Scotland in their opening Super 12 match in the ICC T20 World Cup in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
The Bengal Tiger, the Asiatic Lion and the more widespread leopard have had to swallow their pride. Rarely has the prime minister turned up in person, sun hat and camera at the ready, to welcome a member of the big cat family, notes Shyam G Menon.
Amit Panghal, a World Championships silver medallist, out-punched Namri Berri of Vanuatu via an unanimous verdict.
Seven decades after they became extinct in India, eight Cheetahs arrived in the country from Namibia by a special flight on Saturday morning and were released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park (KNP).
Afghanistan would look to shrug off the defeat against Pakistan and return to winning ways when they take on debutants Namibia, who will be eager to continue their dream run in the T20 World Cup, Dubai on Sunday.
Jamaican sprint queen Elaine Thompson-Herah romped to victory in the 200 metres and Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo held on to win the men's 5,000m to complete contrasting Commonwealth Games golden doubles at Alexander Stadium on Saturday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release cheetahs being brought from Namibia in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park on Saturday morning, an official said on Friday.
Gerhard Erasmus led from the front with a well-crafted unbeaten fifty to guide debutants Namibia to a historic eight-wicket win over Ireland in the first round Group B match and qualification spot in Super 12s of the ICC T20 World Cup in Sharjah on Friday.
Three Indian pugilists, including Nikhat Zareen, advanced to the semi-finals in their respective events after thrilling victories while Lovlina Borgohain bowed out in the quarter-finals in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on Wednesday.
Keeps Namibia in hunt for Super 12.
Netherlands saw off a spirited effort from USA to seal a seven-wicket victory in their semi-final after restricting USA to 138 in 19.4 overs even as Zimbabwe held of a valiant PNG by 27 runs.
Former champions Sri Lanka overcame initial hiccups to subdue an inexperienced yet spirited Namibia by seven wickets, beginning their quest to make the Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup in right earnest, here on Monday.
Images from the T20 World Cup Super 12s match between Namibia and India, Dubai, on Monday.
Australia are the defending champions, having beaten New Zealand by 8 wickets in the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE.
Half-centuries from Mohammed Rizwan and Babar Azam helped Pakistan outclass Namibia by 45 runs to storm into the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
The medals table of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Sebastian Coe, the head of World athletics and twice Olympic champion over the distance, described the women's World 1,500 metres final won by Kenyan Faith Kipyegon on Monday as one of the best races he has ever seen.
Zimbabwe's first match will take place on the second day of the competition against fellow qualifier Ireland in Hobart on October 17.
A look at India's performances in the past seven T20 World Cups.
Images from the the T20 World Cup Super 12s match between Afghanistan and Namibia, in Abu Dhabi, on Sunday.
Images from the T20 World Cup Super 12s match between New Zealand and Namibia, in Sharjah, in Friday.
India is all set to introduce cheetahs from South Africa in a wildlife sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh by August as part of attempts to rehabilitate the species that had become extinct from the country.
© 2025 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances