INDIA, April 9: Authorities at India’s Kuno National Park have initiated disciplinary action against a forest worker filmed offering water to a cheetah and her cubs, in a video that quickly went viral online.

The man, a driver at the sanctuary, disregarded guidelines that specify only authorized personnel are permitted to approach the big cats, according to park officials speaking to PTI news agency.

Cheetahs were declared extinct in India in 1952, making them the only large mammal to disappear since the country’s independence. However, they were reintroduced to Kuno in 2022 as part of a large-scale effort to repopulate the species.

The incident gained attention on Sunday when the video of the worker providing water to the cheetahs spread on social media. The footage shows the man pouring water into a metal pan after being encouraged by off-camera individuals. Shortly after, a cheetah named Jwala and her four cubs approach the pan and drink from it.

Officials explained that it is not unusual for staff members to offer water to the big cats if they come near the park’s boundary in order to coax them back into the forest. In this case, the mother and her cubs were near the boundary, said Uttam Kumar Sharma, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, in a statement to PTI.

“The monitoring team is generally instructed to divert or lure the cheetahs back inside the park when they approach the boundary to prevent human-cheetah conflict,” he explained. However, only trained personnel are authorized to perform such tasks, and the man’s actions violated the established protocol.

"There are clear instructions for staff to stay away from cheetahs," Mr. Sharma added. "Only authorized personnel can approach them for specific tasks."

Initially, some media outlets described the video as "heartwarming," but many social media users expressed concern over the safety of both the people and the animals involved. Others suggested that the authorities should consider creating ponds or water bodies within the park to ensure the cheetahs do not have to venture too far for water during the hot summer months.

Tensions have also risen in villages along the park’s border, where cheetahs have been entering fields and killing livestock. Last month, some villagers threw stones at the animals to prevent further attacks, as reported by The New Indian Express. Officials are working to raise awareness in the villages to encourage residents to adapt to living near the big cats.

Between 2022 and 2023, 20 cheetahs were relocated from South Africa and Namibia to Kuno National Park as part of the first-ever intercontinental translocation of the species. Since then, eight cheetahs have died from various causes, including kidney failure and injuries from mating. This has raised concerns about the park’s conditions for the species.

In 2023, experts from South Africa and Namibia involved in the project wrote to India’s Supreme Court, claiming some of the cheetah deaths could have been avoided with better animal monitoring and timely veterinary care.

Experts from the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) in Namibia, who have been part of the project since its start, also expressed concerns over inadequate record-keeping at Kuno. They stated that the park management lacked scientific training and that the veterinarians were too inexperienced to manage such a high-profile project.

Park authorities have dismissed these claims, asserting that there are now 26 cheetahs at Kuno, including 17 in the wild and nine in enclosures. This year, India is set to receive an additional 20 cheetahs from South Africa. Officials confirmed that a task force, in collaboration with South African authorities, has already identified the new cheetahs for translocation.