Delhi given 8 weeks to round up thousands of stray dogs
new delhi
India's top court has ordered authorities in Delhi and its suburbs to move all stray dogs from streets to animal shelters. The court expressed concerns over rising 'menace of dog bites leading to rabies' and gave an eight-week deadline to officials to finish the task.
Delhi's stray dog population is estimated at one million, with suburban Noida, Ghaziabad, and Gurugram also seeing a rise, municipal sources say. India has millions of stray dogs and the country accounts for 36% of the total rabies-related deaths in the world, according to the World Health Organization.
'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.
The court directed that multiple shelters be established across Delhi and its suburbs, each capable of housing at least 5,000 dogs. These shelters should be equipped with sterilisation and vaccination facilities, as well as CCTV cameras.
The court ruled sterilised dogs must not be released in public areas, despite current rules requiring their return to the capture site.
It also ordered that a helpline should be set up within a week to report dog bites and rabies cases.
Animal welfare groups, however, have voiced strong concerns over the court's directive. They said that the timeline set up by the court was unrealistic. 'Most Indian cities currently do not have even 1% of the capacity [needed] to rehabilitate stray dogs in shelters,' said Nilesh Bhanage, founder of PAWS, a prominent animal rights group.
'If the court and the authorities actually want to end the menace, they should focus on strengthening the implementation of the existing regulations to control dog population and rabies - they include vaccination, sterilisation and efficient garbage management.' Government data shows that there were 3.7 million reported cases of dog bites across the country in 2024.
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Delhi given 8 weeks to round up thousands of stray dogs
agencies new delhi India's top court has ordered authorities in Delhi and its suburbs to move all stray dogs from streets to animal shelters. The court expressed concerns over rising 'menace of dog bites leading to rabies' and gave an eight-week deadline to officials to finish the task. Delhi's stray dog population is estimated at one million, with suburban Noida, Ghaziabad, and Gurugram also seeing a rise, municipal sources say. India has millions of stray dogs and the country accounts for 36% of the total rabies-related deaths in the world, according to the World Health Organization. '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. The court directed that multiple shelters be established across Delhi and its suburbs, each capable of housing at least 5,000 dogs. These shelters should be equipped with sterilisation and vaccination facilities, as well as CCTV cameras. The court ruled sterilised dogs must not be released in public areas, despite current rules requiring their return to the capture site. It also ordered that a helpline should be set up within a week to report dog bites and rabies cases. Animal welfare groups, however, have voiced strong concerns over the court's directive. They said that the timeline set up by the court was unrealistic. 'Most Indian cities currently do not have even 1% of the capacity [needed] to rehabilitate stray dogs in shelters,' said Nilesh Bhanage, founder of PAWS, a prominent animal rights group. 'If the court and the authorities actually want to end the menace, they should focus on strengthening the implementation of the existing regulations to control dog population and rabies - they include vaccination, sterilisation and efficient garbage management.' Government data shows that there were 3.7 million reported cases of dog bites across the country in 2024.
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