India’s top court has ordered authorities to remove all stray dogs from the streets and place them in permanent shelters.
This came after several reports in local media of stray dogs biting children in Delhi. Some estimates, based on hospital records, suggest New Delhi sees nearly 2,000 dog bite incidents every day.
According to the World Health Organization, India accounts for 36 per cent of the world’s rabies deaths, and about 30 to 60 per cent of reported rabies cases and deaths in India occur in children under the age of 15.
“Infants and young children, not at any cost, should fall prey to rabies. The action should inspire confidence that they can move freely without fear of being bitten by stray dogs,” legal news website Live Law quoted the court as saying on Monday.
the Supreme Court directed the capital’s civic bodies to immediately initiate the process of capturing 5,000 stray dogs from “high-risk areas” for now and send them to shelters equipped with adequate staff and CCTV surveillance within six to eight weeks.
There are criticism from the citizens who feel there are more important thing for the government to take care of, instead of meddling in canine activities.
Mohit Chauhan wrote on X: “Delhi stray dogs r not a menace. They r part of an ecosystem. Their brutal removal is not a solution. Empathy is. Getting civic agencies 2 do their job properly is a solution n supporting caregivers so that they can provide more is a solution. Lend ur voice 2 the voiceless now.”
A New Delhi animal welfare charity that works with stray dogs, said in an Instagram post: “The Supreme Court order is a death sentence for our community dogs and mass relocation is not the answer. “
A petition to reverse the Supreme Court’s decision on change.org already had more 370,000 signatures, the description claimed that New Delhi’s stray dogs are part of the community.
“They live in our neighbourhoods, provide companionship to those who may otherwise feel lonely, and often become our cherished friends,” wrote the petition’s starter, Poonam Ahuja.
“It’s disheartening to face an order that suggests relocating these innocent beings to shelters permanently, tearing them away from the only home they’ve ever known: the streets they lovingly guard.”
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