MP: Forest Dept Withholds Kuno Cheetah Death Reports

(MENAFN- IANS) Bhopal, Oct 12 (IANS) The Madhya Pradesh Forest Department has refused to disclose post-mortem reports of cheetahs that died at Kuno National Park in Sheopur, citing concerns that revealing the information could adversely affect India's relations with foreign countries.

In its response to a Right to Information (RTI) application, the Kuno Wildlife Forest Division invoked Section 8(1)(a) of the RTI Act, 2005, which exempts certain information from disclosure if it could affect India's sovereignty, security, strategic interests or relations with a foreign state.

In a letter dated October 9, Public Information Officer and Divisional Forest Officer Amar Shrikrishna said,“Project Cheetah is a national project of the Government of India, being implemented with international cooperation."

The RTI reply available with IANS stated that, "The project is not limited to the Kuno Wildlife Division alone. The Government of India has signed formal Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with foreign countries in connection with this project.”

The officer further stated that information whose disclosure could adversely affect India's relations with a foreign state was exempt under the Act.

“Since the Kuno Wildlife Division is a regional field-level unit, it is not competent to disclose such information,” the reply said.

Wildlife activist Ajay Dubey, who filed the RTI application, questioned the decision, arguing that making the post-mortem reports public would not harm India's foreign relations and was necessary to ensure transparency in the conservation programme.

Dubey filed the application on January 28, seeking information on four aspects of Project Cheetah, including details of foreign tours undertaken by officials and post-mortem reports, along with related findings, of cheetahs that died in Madhya Pradesh from January 1, 2024, onwards.

After the initial response, he filed a first appeal. Following an appellate order dated September 17, the office of the Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden, Madhya Pradesh, directed the Kuno division to take necessary action through a letter dated September 18. However, the division refused to provide the reports in its October 9 reply.

The department said correspondence concerning cheetah protection and management at Kuno National Park, Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary and Veerangana Durgavati Tiger Reserve had involved foreign delegations, the National Tiger Conservation Authority, the Madhya Pradesh government and the Union Environment Ministry.

According to Dubey, the department also stated that no records of official foreign tours related to the project were available in its office.

Dubey said the post-mortem findings should be made public to establish the causes of cheetah deaths and ensure accountability.

Project Cheetah was launched in September 2022 with the translocation of eight cheetahs from Namibia to Kuno. Twelve more were brought from South Africa in February 2023.

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