12 South African Cheetahs To Land In India On Saturday

After months of delay, a dozen wild cheetahs from South Africa will finally arrive around 12 noon on Saturday in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park (KNP), where eight such felines were brought from Namibia last year, a wildlife expert associated with India's cheetah revival project said on Monday.

These big cats - seven males and five females - will embark on journey to their new home thousands of miles away aboard an Indian Air Force (IAF) transport aircraft from the OR Tambo International Airport, Gauteng, South Africa on Friday evening, the project participant and expert told PTI.

He said the South African cheetahs will first arrive at the Gwalior Air Force base in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday morning and 30 minutes later they will be transported some 165km away to KNP in Sheopur district by IAF helicopters.

After landing at KNP around 12 noon, they will be put into quarantine bomas (enclosures) after half an hour (12.30 pm), added the expert.

KNP Director Uttam Sharma said they have set up 10 quarantine bomas for South African cheetahs. In two of these facilities, two pairs of cheetah brothers would be kept.

"We have completed our preparations to receive the big cats on Saturday," he added.

Experts said a delegation from South Africa visited KNP in early September last year to see arrangements at the wildlife sanctuary for housing the world's fastest land animals.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between India and South Africa last month for the translocation of the mammals last month.

South Africa has donated these big cats to India. But India has to pay USD 3,000 for the capture of every cheetah to the African nation before they are translocated, said the wildlife expert.

India had planned to airlift these South African cheetahs in August last year but couldn't do so due to delay in signing a formal translocation agreement between the two countries.

Due to the delay in the MoU signing for the inter-continental translocation of these big cats, some experts had in December expressed concern over the health of the South African cheetahs as these animals have been quarantined in their home country since July 15 in anticipation of their transfer to India.

As a result of long quarantine, these animals might have lost their fitness, they had said.

Prolonged quarantine could be taking a toll on the health of these felines, who are slated to join the eight cheetahs imported from Namibia and released into KNP in mid-September, the experts had said.

In fact, the 12 South African cheetahs earmarked for India have not hunted for themselves after being kept in bomas, wildlife experts in the know of India's cheetah reintroduction plan had said.

Three of them have been kept in Phinda quarantine boma in KwaZulu-Natal Province and nine in Rooiberg Quarantine boma in Limpopo Province, they said.

Seven of the cheetahs have lost fitness to a considerable extent as they have not hunted even once since July 15, one of the experts told PTI last month.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on his 72nd birthday on September 17, had released eight cheetahs flown in from Namibia into KNP amid a lot of fanfare, setting the ball rolling for the revival of their population in India where these distinctively spotted cat species became extinct seven decades ago.

These fastest land animals from Namibia – five females and three males – are currently in hunting enclosures at the park before their full release into the wild.

In August, the SA cheetahs selected by Indian officials for translocation had completed one-month in quarantine, but they couldn't be airlifted to KNP in absence of approval from the South African government. Around Independence Day, the eight Namibian cheetahs had not completed their quarantine period so the Indian government could not bring them to KNP as well, the experts said.

As per Indian wildlife laws, a month-long quarantine is mandatory before importing animals and they are required to be kept in isolation for another 30 days after arrival in the country.

The experts said the spotted animals' metapopulation (cheetah count in small and medium parks) in South Africa has risen to 504 from 217 in 2011.

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

Former Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh had initiated 'Project Cheetah' in 2009 under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government with an aim to reintroduce the wild cats in India.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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ड्रीम गर्ल की 'पूजा' को जब 'पठान' का गया कॉल, हुई इतनी मजेदार बात, फैन्स ने कहा- इसे कहते हैं मार्केटिंग

आयुष्मान खुराना इन दिनों अपनी अपकमिंग फिल्म 'ड्रीम गर्ल 2' को लेकर चर्चा में बने हुए हैं. आयुष्मान खुराना की फिल्म 7 जुलाई को सिनेमाघरों में रिलीज हो रही है. हाल ही में आयुष्मान खुराना ने अपने इंस्टाग्राम पर एक वीडियो शेयर किया, जिसमें वे ड्रीम गर्ल की 'पूजा' के किरदार में नजर आए. इस वीडियो में आयुष्मान खुराना लड़की के गेटअप में दिखाई दे रहे हैं. वीडियो में आप देख सकते हैं कि पूजा को पठान का कॉल आता है, जिसके बाद दोनों अपनी आने वाली फिल्मों के बारे में बात करने लगते हैं.

वीडियो में आप देख सकते हैं कि पूजा बनी आयुष्मान खुराना को पठान यानी कि शाहरुख खान का कॉल आता है. वीडियो में शाहरुख की आवाज सुनाई देती है. वे कहते हैं कि जल्द ही मेरी जवान आ रही है, जिस पर आयुष्मान कहते हैं कि जल्द ही मेरी जवानी भी आ रही है. आयुष्मान वीडियो में बताते हैं कि उनकी फिल्म 'ड्रीम गर्ल 2' 7 जुलाई को आ रही है. इसके बाद वे डांस करने लगते हैं. हालांकि इसमें आयुष्मान का पूरा चेहरा तो नहीं दिखाई देता, लेकिन लड़की के अवतार में उनकी झलक जरूर देखने को मिलती है. 

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इस वीडियो के सामने आने के बाद फैन्स ने इस पर तरह-तरह की प्रतिक्रियाएं देनी शुरू कर दी है. एक यूजर ने वीडियो पर कमेंट कर लिखा है, "पूजा जैसा न कोई दूजा". तो एक अन्य फैन ने लिखा है, "इसे कहते हैं मार्केटिंग. 3 फिल्म प्रमोट कर दिया". एक और यूजर लिखते हैं, "लगता है कि इस फिल्म में शाहरुख का कैमियो है". 

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No Trade With Pak, They Send Drugs To Punjab Every Day: Bhagwant Mann

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday disapproved the idea of resumption of trade with Pakistan, asking how it can be carried out with a nation that sends drugs and arms every day to his state through drones. The Chief Minister also took a swipe at BJP leader Sunil Jakhar over his tweet about supporting the "beleaguered neighbour".

Responding to a question on the resumption of trade ties with Pakistan, Mr Mann said, "How can we conduct trade with a country with which our relations are not good and which sends slow poison (narcotics) to kill our youth?"

Pakistan sends drugs and arms and ammunition to Punjab using drones every day, he told reporters. The Chief Minister also referred to the ongoing economic crisis in the neighbouring country.

"Sunil Jakhar has said help should be extended to Pakistan. He is from Abohar and he should send kinnow there (Pakistan)," Mr Mann said.

In a tweet on Monday, Mr Jakhar said, "As millions suffer food shortages, a virtually bankrupt Pakistan desperately needs help. A confident India should support a beleaguered neighbour-despite inimical designs of its deep state. Lets reciprocate the spirit of goodwill which made Kartarpur corridor possible."

Pakistan suspended trade with India in August 2019 after New Delhi revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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इस तस्वीर में छिपा है एक ख़तरनाक जीव, IFS अधिकारी परवीन कासवान ने शेयर की तस्वीर

Social Media Viral Post: यूं तो सोशल मीडिया पर कई पोस्ट वायरल होते रहते हैं. कुछ पोस्ट तो अच्छे होते हैं, वहीं कुछ कुछ पोस्ट चौंकाने वाले होते हैं. वन अधिकारी परवीन कासवान ने एक तस्वीर शेयर की है. पोस्ट में उन्होंने एक पेड़ की तस्वीर शेयर की है. इस तस्वीर में एक बेहद डरावना जीव है. अगर आफकी नज़रें हैं तेज़ तो खोज कर बताइए. कई यूज़र्स ने तो जीव की पहचान कर ली है. वहीं कई यूज़र्स अभी भी पहचान करने में विफल रहे हैं. अगर आपकी नज़रें हैं तेज़ तो सबसे पहले खोजिए.

देखें तस्वीर

The one sitting on his throne on edge of Forest. Guess what. pic.twitter.com/UTaYPUuudn

— Parveen Kaswan, IFS (@ParveenKaswan) February 9, 2023

इस तस्वीर को शेयर करते हुए परवीन कासवान ने लिखा है- एक जीव सिंहासन पर बैठा है. आपको खोजना है. इस तस्वीर पर कई यूज़र्स ने रिप्लाई किया है. 

परवीन कासवान ने खुल्लासा कर दिया है. देखिए रिप्लाई.

It's a Burmese python. Clicked few months back.

— Parveen Kaswan, IFS (@ParveenKaswan) February 9, 2023

इस रिप्लाई में उन्होंने बताया है कि ये एक सांप है.

इसपर कई यूज़र्स ने भी रिप्लाई किया है.

????‍??‍??‍?#sunbathing

— Parul Aggarwal- Volunteer (@ParulAggarwal04) February 9, 2023

इन्होंने पहचान लिया है, मगर एक यूज़र ने पूछा- सर ये तस्वीर आपने खींची है?

Sir you captured that pic?

— Raaza Shekar (@raaza_shekar) February 9, 2023

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Punjab Governor vs Chief Minister Over Foreign Trip For School Principals

Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit on Monday questioned a government appointment and the selection of school principals for a foreign trip, drawing a sharp response from Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann who said his government is only answerable to Punjabis and not a Centre-appointed governor.

The row erupted after Mr Purohit wrote a letter to Mr Mann asking for details on the selection of government school principals sent to Singapore for a training seminar, saying he has received complaints of "malpractices and illegalities".

The governor also questioned the appointment of Gurinderjit Singh Jawanda as the Punjab Information and Communication Technology Corporation Limited chairman and pointed out that his name figured in a kidnapping and property grabbing case.

Claiming that Mr Mann "never cared to reply" to his letters in the past, Mr Purohit told the Chief Minister that people did not elect him to run the state according to his "whims and fancies" and that as per the Constitution, he is "bound to furnish" any information sought by Raj Bhavan.

He asked Mr Mann to reply to his letter within a fortnight, failing which he would seek legal advice for further action.

Taking to Twitter, Mr Mann said his government is accountable only to 3 crore Punjabis.

"Honourable Governor Sir, your letter was received through the media... all the issues mentioned in the letter are State subjects... According to the Constitution, I and my government are accountable to 3 crore Punjabis and not any governor appointed by the central government. Treat this as my reply," the chief minister said in a tweet in Punjabi.

The Punjab government had sent 36 government school principals to a professional teacher training seminar in Singapore from February 6 to 10.

"I have received complaints in respect to the selection of principals for sending them to Singapore for training. The complainants point out certain malpractices and illegalities in the selection of these principals. The allegation is that there is no transparency," Mr Purohit said in his letter.

"I, therefore, request you to send me the criteria and details of entire selection process. Please also give detail if it was widely published throughout Punjab. As per news reports... the first batch has come back, (so) please let me have details of total expenditure incurred on travelling and boarding lodging and expenses towards training," he said.

The governor said he has also received a complaint regarding Jawanda's appointment as the Punjab Information and Communication Technology Corporation Limited chairman.

"As per another complaint I came to know that you have appointed Sh. Gurinderjit Singh Jawanda, as Chairman, of Punjab Information and Communication and Technology Corporation Ltd., which is a very important and prestigious Corporation of Punjab. As I have been made aware that the name of Sh. Gurinderjit Singh Jawanda appears in a kidnapping and property grabbing case, please send me full detail of this case," Mr Purohit said.

Further in his letter, Mr Purohit expressed displeasure over Mr Mann choosing to "ignore" his letters in the past.

"In one of the letters addressed to me, you had mentioned that because of the heavy mandate by the people of Punjab you are the Chief Minister , I fully agree with you on this count but you should also keep it in mind that people of the State elected you for running the administration as per the Constitution and not as per whims and fancies.

"As per Art. 167 of the Constitution of India, you are bound to furnish me full details and information asked by me, but you have not furnished the same and never cared to reply and treated all my queries with contempt," Mr Purohit stated.

He said he did not reveal his previous letters to the press to maintain cordial relations between Chief Minister's Office and Raj Bhavan, but he was "compelled" to do so now as "it appears to me that you have decided to ignore my letters".

"In spite of my detailed letter dated 14-12-2022, you chose to ignore all misdeeds of Kuldeep Singh Chahal, IPS. You have not only promoted him but also posted him as Commissioner of Jalandhar and that too the orders being issued just before 26th January, knowing very well that Governor is to unfurl the national flag at Jalandhar," Mr Purohit said.

"On this issue, it seems that this officer was your blue-eyed boy and you chose to ignore facts that were brought to your notice by this office," he charged.

Mr Chahal, a Punjab cadre IPS officer, was removed from the post of Senior Superintendent of Police, Chandigarh, for his alleged "misconduct" last year. He was promoted to the rank of Deputy Inspector General after he was sent back to Punjab.

In a letter dated January 4, Mr Purohit said, he wrote about the presence of a non-appointee of the government, Naval Aggarwal, in meetings of senior officers where sensitive and confidential matters related to the country's security were discussed.

He also pointed out that he had written to Mann regarding the "illegal" appointment of the Punjab Agricultural University vice-chancellor in November last year, seeking details of advertisements and on the issue of 2 lakh Scheduled Caste students being "compelled to discontinue their studies due to non-disbursal of scholarship".

Asking Mr Mann to furnish information on all these issues within a fortnight, Mr Purohit said, "If you fail to provide this information within the stipulated time period... I will be compelled to take legal advice for further action since I am duty-bound to protect the Constitution."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Uddhav Thackeray's Outreach To North Indians Settled In Mumbai

Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said his party doesn't discriminate between Marathi-speaking people and north Indians settled in Mumbai, remarks viewed as an outreach to the key vote bank ahead of the crucial city civic polls.

Addressing a gathering of north Indians, the former Maharashtra chief minister called for unity and said Hindutva doesn't mean spreading hate and dividing people. "I fell out with BJP but I never abandoned Hindutva. The BJP is not Hindutva. Uttar Bharatiyas want answers on what Hindutva is. Hating each other is not Hindutva. We don't discriminate between Marathi-speaking and north Indian people residing in Mumbai," Mr Thackeray said and appealed to the community to sink the past misunderstandings.

Significantly, the Shiv Sena has always projected itself as the sole guardian of the sons-of-the-soil and had led violent agitations against north Indians in the past.

Mr Thackeray said he walked out of the alliance with BJP to protect his dignity and joined hands with the NCP and Congress to form the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) after the 2019 Assembly polls.

".....Otherwise I would have been a slave with a belt around my neck just like some of my people have now become," he said in an apparent reference to the rebel Shiv Sena MLAs who belong to the Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Mr Thackeray said he becomes a victim of the smear campaign whenever he meets north Indians or Muslims and questioned are raised on his Hindutva.

"My meeting with you has been criticised. If I meet Muslims, it is said I have given up Hindutva. When PM Narendra Modi came to Mumbai two days back, whose kitchen did he go to? If I had done that I would have been called anti-Hindu. But if the prime minister does that then it is said he has a big heart. I want to make it clear we have nothing against the Bohra community. They are with us," he said.

During his latest visit to Mumbai, the Prime Minister inaugurated the new Marol campus of the Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah Arabic Academy, a prominent educational institution of the Bohra community, and said he had come there as a family member of the community.

Mr Thackeray accused the BJP of creating a rift among Hindus.

"I come here to open your eyes and not provoke you. Shiv Sena never discriminates among people while helping them when it comes to blood donation or taking patients to hospitals in their ambulances. If we are together for five years why should we be separate during elections? "he asked.

He said everyone should come together to protect the freedom achieved from the British and ensure we don't become slaves of our own people.

"These people don't have the daring to call for elections- be it for Lok Sabha, Maharashtra Assembly or municipal corporations. They don't have guts to face challenges and they call themselves leaders of Hindus," he said targetting the BJP.

Mr Thackeray also said that unity among people is the "security kavach" for him.

He took a dig at Maharashtra governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari quitting the office, saying it was a good day for the state.

"Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's coronation was performed by a priest from north India, and today the person who insulted Shivaji Maharaj has been sent back," he said.

In the 2017 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls, the BJP made giant strides by winning 82 seats, just two seats behind the Shiv Sena in the 227-member civic body.

The Bharatiya Janata Party, which shares power with the Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena faction, has said it would register a record win in the Mumbai civic polls, due since early last year.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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"7 दिन में मंदिर हटा लें, वरना..." : MP में रेलवे ने बजरंगबली को नोटिस जारी कर दी चेतावनी

मध्यप्रदेश के मुरैना में सबलगढ़ तहसील मुख्यालय में एक अनोखा मामला देखने को मिला है, जहां भगवान बजरंग बली के नाम पर नोटिस जारी किया गया है. सबलगढ़ में 11 मुखी हनुमान मंदिर को रेलवे विभाग अपनी जमीन पर बता रहा है. रेलवे ने इसे अतिक्रमण करार देकर उसे हटाने के लिए नोटिस जारी किया है. मंदिर हटाने के लिये भगवान बजरंगबली के नाम से नोटिस जारी कर चेतावनी दी गई है कि मंदिर सात दिन में हटा लिया जाये अन्यथा तोड़ने की कार्रवाई की जाएगी.

उत्तर मध्य रेलवे के वरिष्ठ खण्ड अभियंता जौरा, अलापुर द्वारा 8 फरवरी को यह आदेश जारी कर मंदिर की दीवार पर चस्पा कर दिया था. श्रद्धालुओं द्वारा इसकी तीखी आलोचना की जा रही है. उत्तर मध्य रेलवे द्वारा ग्वालियर से श्योपुर तक नेरोगेज से ब्रोडगेज रेल लाइन का अपग्रेडेशन किया जा रहा है.

उत्तर मध्य रेलवे (झांसी मण्डल) के जनसम्पर्क अधिकारी, मनोज सिंह ने बताया, "यह नोटिस बजरंग बली के नाम से नहीं था. यह नोटिस पुजारी मंदिर बजरंग बली के नाम से था. लिपिकीय त्रुटी की वजह से यह गलती हुई है. जैसे ही हमारे संज्ञान में यह आया, इसे तुरंत संशोधित करके 10 तारीख को ही नोटिस जारी कर दिया."

मुरैना के अतिरिक्त जिला दण्डाधिकारी नरोत्तम भार्गव ने कहा, "रेलवे के अधिकारियों से हमारे एसडीएम की बात हुई है. उनका कहना है कि उस मकान से जुड़े लोगों की कोई जानकारी नहीं मिल रही थी. ऐसी स्थिति में बजरंग बली के नाम से नोटिस दिया था. अभी रेलवे अधिकारियों ने संशोधित नोटिस जारी कर दिया है."

मुरैना जिले की सबलगढ़ तहसील मुख्यालय पर रेल लाइन के किनारे 11 मुखी हनुमान जी का मंदिर का निर्माण करीब 40-50 साल पहले किया गया था. स्थानीय लोगों का कहना है कि इस मंदिर को वे करीब 40-50 साल से देख रहे हैं और इसमें पूजा-पाठ कर रहे हैं.
 

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