Two more cheetahs have been released into the wild at the Kuno National Park (KNP) in Madhya Pradesh's Sheopur district, taking the count to 12, a senior forest official said on Tuesday.

Eight Namibian cheetahs, comprising five females and three males, were brought to the KNP and released into special enclosures by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 17 last year as part of an ambitious programme to reintroduce the species in India.

Twelve more cheetahs – seven males and five females – were brought to the KNP from South Africa on February 18 this year.

On Monday, two male cheetahs, Prabhash and Pavak, were released into the wild at the KNP, Sheopur's Divisional Forest Officer P K Verma said.

Both of them were brought to India from South Africa, the official said.

Now, the number of cheetahs in free range has gone up to 12, while five felines and a cub are in the enclosures, he said.

Six cheetahs, including three cubs born to cheetah Jwala, have died at the KNP since March.

Cheetah Jwala gave birth to four cubs in March this year at the Kuno National Park.

The last cheetah died in India in Koriya district in present-day Chhattisgarh in 1947, and the species was declared extinct from the country in 1952.

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