Citizens Of Tricity Speak About Stray Dog Menace

Citizens of Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula weighed in with their views on increasing stray dog menace in the tricity and the inability of the Administration to deal with it. We collected the excerpts from Tribune open house question, where it asks people for what they believe “the right solution” should be for a prevalent stray dog menace issue.

While some of the suggestions were outright immature, some were worth looking into. Many blamed the authorities for not doing their job properly and being guilty for letting this issue to reach to such an extent.

Many chimed in with viable solutions – from creating similar shelters for stray dogs likes the cows have, enhanced sterilization drives, training the strays for police department, collection of tax for making dog pounds, educating the people about tackling stray dogs and responsible feeding of dogs.

Here are the excerpts from the Tricity responses:

Nowadays, the population of stray dogs is increasing at break- neck speed. To stop this, the authorities should make shelters for stray dogs. There should be space for dogs, but they should not be allowed to roam freely. People should be aware about steps to be taken in case a dog tries to bite. An eye should be kept on stray dogs in the city. — S Gulati, Chandigarh

“Sterilization, vaccination can provide succour”

Main reason for the menace is open garbage in streets. Stray dogs scavenge on garbage. Animal lovers decry move for any strict action against dogs. There is a need for sterilization and vaccination of dogs to deal with the menace. – Charu Malhotra, Mohali

“Tackle issue on priority basis”

The Municipal Corporation has miserably failed in tackling dog bites in the city. Every area, layout, street and road is infested with stray dogs. Sterilization and vaccination drives by specialized and expert teams must be carried out at regular intervals. Overflowing garbage bins have increased the problem. Owners of meat shops also dump waste in drains, which attracts stray canine. The MC must clear garbage heaps and close unlicensed meat shops. Animal lovers can help by rounding up strays and keeping them in custody until good homes are found for them. Land should be allotted for constructing dog pound. Its cost can be covered by fund-raising campaigns. – Dr Shruti K Chawla, Chandigarh

“Govt agencies have failed to provide solution”

On an average, 30 to 40 dog bite cases are reported in Chandigarh every day. The situation in Mohali and Panchkula is equally worrisome. Basically, dogs are scavengers and open garbage dumps are easy source of food for them. Besides, many residents feed dogs at their door steps. Dogs develop territorial habitats. During breeding season, they become quite aggressive and attack passersby. The female does so to protect pups. Under the prevention of cruelty to animals, culling is prohibited. The option to control dog population is sterilization, wherein government agencies have not been effective. Therefore, the civic authorities must undertake sustained and regular sterilization by roping in NGOs, besides ensuring that garbage is dumped in closed enclosures. The public must be counseled not to feed dogs in streets especially at their door steps. – SS Arora, Mohali

“Authorities not serious about problem”

Though the problem of stray dogs is serious, the tricity authorities are not making efforts to solve it. The number of dogs is increasing day by day. Dogs freely roam in streets, markets and even near religious places, which are frequented by old people. Often the young and old people become victims of dogs. Sincere efforts should be made to shift dogs to an isolated place. There should always be enough stock of vaccines at all designated centres in the tricity for treatment of stray dog-bite victims. – Balbir Singh Batra, Mohali

“Claim huge compensation in case of dog bites”

In spite of a rise in dog bite cases, the Municipal Corporations of the tricity have failed to contain the stray canine population. The authorities only come into action when cases of dog bites are exposed by the media. Instead of advising residents to adopt stray dogs, the MCs should take steps to check their population through sterilization and keep them in pounds/shelters at different locations. To provide immediate treatment in case of dog bite, adequate supply of anti-rabies injection/medicines at the designated dispensaries/hospitals be ensured all the time. Residents should also claim huge compensation in dog bite cases from the civic bodies. They should make MCs realize failure in performing their duty and shouldering responsibility to protect residents. – AS Ahuja, Chandigarh

“All dogs must be trained”

Animals were helpful in the past, helpful now and will be helpful in future too. Dogs have made remarkable example in the Police Department, in service of the visually impaired, for rich and royals. If dogs are not trained properly, they could be dangerous to children or to anybody. Last week, a watchman was killed and eaten by stray dogs in Haryana. All stray dogs should be trained and utilized for defense services. Fix responsibility of the department concerned to deal the menace with special gear. – Harjinder Sandhawalia, Chandigarh

“Human life is precious”

Stray dogs have created havoc in the tricity. Human life is precious and should be saved at any cost. Yet we as civilized society cannot ignore the animal rights also. For this, the civic authorities should relocate stray dogs to pounds set up on the city periphery. Adoption can be encouraged to reduce the menace of stray dogs. Educate residents to feed dogs at pounds only within the designated hours. The public should be more vigilant in this regard. Extra care should be taken of children and elderly. Both are more vulnerable to dog attacks. Pet dogs must be registered while strays should be identified and moved to dog pounds. Dog-bite victims must be provided treatment. – Dr Rajeev Kumar, Chandigarh

“Authorities lack will to check menace”

The authorities are lacking the will to control the rise in number of dogs. Lot of public money is being spent on sterilizing dogs, but the results are not achieved. The vets and NGOs should make honest efforts to contain the menace. Our dispensaries do not have sufficient stock of anti-rabies vaccine. These should be fully equipped with medicines and vaccines. The people bitten by dogs are more harassed as they do not get treatment immediately. Dogs all over the tricity should be vaccinated. – Bharat Bhushan Sharma, Chandigarh

“Sterilization job not complete”

After vigorous sterilization of stray dogs in the tricity, there has been a decline in their population. One comes across fewer puppies roaming in streets and markets. Still the job of sterilisation is not complete. The MC should get stray dogs vaccinated. The anti-rabies vaccine should be available free of cost at veterinary centres and government hospitals and round-the-clock to give immunity to victims of dog bites. – Harish Kapur, Chandigarh

“Owners must get pets registered”

Read Chandigarh Administration Planning A Penalty of Rs 5000 For Not Registering Pet dog

I am of the opinion when a man murders a person, a death penalty is imposed on the killer. In the same manner, if a dog roams in city streets without any registration number round its neck, then the same penalty be imposed on it. The Municipal Corporation’s suggestion to residents to get their dogs registered is a step in the right direction. Otherwise, heavy fine must be imposed on their owners. It is said a dog starved at his master’s gate predicts the ruin of the state. – Tarlok Singh, Mani Majra

“People need to be responsible enough”

There are two ways of keeping a dog as a pet. One is you keep a dog inside your house, feed it, vaccinate it and in turn it keeps a watch on your place. The other way is you start feeding a stray dog in your locality. Daily for the sake of a few crumbs of a chapatti, a dog ends up at your threshold every now and then. Though it guards your house, this stray dog may prove dangerous for others. So, we should never feed stray dogs, rather inform the MC about such canine. In my opinion, the MC is doing its job properly, but we people need to be responsible enough. As responsible citizens, we must keep a watch on all stray dogs. In this way, the number of stray dogs will go down, ultimately leading to a decrease in cases of dog bite. – Bir Devinder Singh Bedi, Chandigarh

“Collect nominal tax for dog shelters”

With the way stray dogs are patronized to bite any resident in the tricity, it’s difficult to acknowledge, who among the two is an actual citizen. Respecting animal lovers’ feelings, if stray dogs are not to be killed, then shelter home is a viable remedy. Let dog pounds be financed by collecting a nominal tax on luxury items and five-star hotel billings. Authorities, doing nothing to curb the menace, need to be made responsible. – MPS Chadha, Mohali

“If there is will, there is a way”

As per the Municipal Act, 2001, placing eatables in the open for stray animals and dogs in streets is banned and a punishable act. That’s why, home collection of garbage started in cities. Stray dogs and cow menace is due to weak governance. Those feeding stray dogs should be fined. Placing eatables in the open should invite penalty. The government should kill stray dogs in the city. Export of stray dogs should be allowed to make city free of canines. There are 1,000 ways to do a job if there is a will. Lack of sincerity is the main reason behind every increasing stray canine problem in the city. – Ashok Kumar Goel, Panchkula.

“Provide shelter for stray dogs”

The authorities should make proper shelters for stray dogs. In order to check their population, male and female dogs should be kept separately. Instead of keeping costly pet dogs of different breeds, people should adopt stray canine as pets. To save oneself and help others from dog bites, residents must make a habit, particularly while going out for a walk, to keep a stick in their hands. – Sohan Lal Gupta, Patiala

“Bold action is warranted”

The soul-stirring spectacle of a poor there-year-old girl surrounded by a pack of dogs, terrified and screaming, does not leave me even after months despite the little consolation of my rescuing intervention. Dog population is rapidly increasing and so is its threat, which should prick the conscience of dog lovers and the authorities alike. Even pet dogs are a threat to neighbors. Only five per cent of them bear a metal token of registration. All steps like sterilization or kennel pounds have proved futile with lakhs going down the drain. Thousands of harmless animals like goats, sheep and poultry are slaughtered daily. Paradoxically, only dogs seem to have the protection of the cruelty to animals shield. Tall claims of the tricity MCs have fallen flat. Dogs continue to attack pedestrians and two-wheeler riders, besides make venturing in the dark or isolated areas a nightmare. Only solution to the burgeoning menace lies in culling the stray and unregistered dogs at regular intervals. Law does not allow the necessary killing of menacing dogs like other animals. Now bold action is warranted, but the civic authorities would not budge without a court diktat against animal rights overriding human rights. – Lalit Bharadwaj, Panchkula

“Amend laws to control canine population”

Having failed to reach a satisfaction level for city residents in providing essential civic amenities, the Municipal Corporation has not been able to tackle the problem of stray dogs. Not only the stray dog population has been allowed, the mounting number of unregistered pet dogs also adds to the dirty picture. These animals not only keep littering at public places, but also pose a threat of biting the passersby. The half-hearted sterilization and hounding efforts of the MC to control stray dogs bear no consequences as is visible with the appearance of more and more canines in streets, markets and public parks. Unless the safety of human lives is considered more valuable than those of dogs and laws amended accordingly, the ground reality in controlling the dog bite cases and their treatment may get from bad to worse year after year. – SC Luthra, Chandigarh

“Have we allowed the menace to grow?”

The problem of stray dogs roaming around freely in the UT has become dangerous today. Imagine the population of over 15, 000 stray dogs, which is growing by each passing day. Hundreds of canines, young and old are spread across the city, biting people, mainly children and old. At night, these dogs chase cars/two-wheelers. This leads to accidents. The root cause of the problem is lack of adequate drive by the MC to sterilize stray dogs. We are feeding dogs in front of our houses. Animal activists also add to the problem by preventing harsher action to minimize the problem. The solution lies in strengthening hands of the MC by providing adequate staff to sterilize dogs and eliminate those, which go mad and bite people freely. The authorities should also ensure that hospitals are well equipped to deal with increasing dog-bite cases. Dog pounds must be created. Those who wish to adopt young pups can do so from these pounds on reasonable payment. The money thus collected can be used to run these pounds. The NGOs can also help in this regard. The MC should take it as a project under a Councillor and implement it with due sincerity. Cooperation from the people in rounding up stray dogs will be welcome. Let’s face this problem before we become a dog-ridden city. – Col RD Singh (retd), Ambala Cantt

“Shoot stray dogs”

The tricity authorities are not doing enough to deal with the rising population of stray dogs and dog-bite cases. A ‘chalta hai’ attitude is adopted by the authorities concerned. The problem is not being taken seriously. Many people get bitten by stray dogs daily and have to be medically treated. Yet the so-called ‘people for animals’ remains mum on the issue. Shoot stray dogs to eliminate this menace. That’s the only way to deal with this menace. – RK Kapoor, Chandigarh

“Stray dogs dearer than humans”

Stray dogs’ are a serious issue. What more can be expected from an administration, which can not control stray dog population. Forget to catch criminals. On top of it there are some weird politicians sitting at the Centre for whom stray dogs are dearer than humans. Stray dogs should be put in shelter outside the city. There should be not a single dog on road. The High Court should direct the MC to catch all stray dogs and put them in shelter. – Opinder Kaur Sekhon, Chandigarh

“Wild animals erroneously declared domestic”

It’s really disturbing to know that 1.13 lakh people were bitten by stray dogs on roads and streets of Chandigarh and Punjab in 2018. Their count was 54,000 in 2016. Stray dogs are an absolute nuisance to Indian society. They litter anywhere, chase, bite, maul humans and children and create sound pollution by continuous barking throughout day and night. They are of little use to humans. Dogs are actually wild animals erroneously and intentionally declared domestic. They are a threat to human society. On the one hand, we are killing harmless animals in the name of food while on the other, we are nurturing dogs. Most dog lovers are non-vegetarian and do not raise any voice against killing of other harmless animals. They kill poultry to feed dogs and ridiculously call themselves animal lovers. In most other countries, culling of dogs is allowed while in India the same is banned. Further, the Municipal Corporation, which is not even competent to supply water to the city, is told to sterilize thousands of stray dogs. It is simply ridiculous. Obviously, they cannot do it. The fault lies in the stray dog policy silently issued as ABC rules without the legislature approval and upheld by the Supreme Court. The policy needs to be changed to allow systematic culling of stray dogs coupled with sterilization. Dog lovers in India seem to have no concern for human life at all. Our minister tells people to train young children (even three years old) how to behave. A day will come when the masses will be up in arms against the stray dog menace and governments will fall on this issue. – Sanjay Chopra, Mohali

“UT should build kennel for dogs”

The incidents of stray dog bites are increasing with each day in Chandigarh. As many as 40 dog bite are reported per day, 40 per cent dogs are sterilized and 400 neutered per month. These figures illustrate the magnitude of the problem. The Haryana Government has built a kennel in Panchkula, which is a noble thought to overcome this nuisance. The UT Administration should also follow this path. NGOs under the garb of dog-lovers and the law are making mockery of the safety of children, women, senior citizens’ and pedestrians. Dog pounds on the lines of cattle pounds, where strays can be kept and humans (dog lovers) can take care of such shelters by showering their love, visiting them, breeding them, training them as also neutering them, is the only solution to this menace. Why pet lovers wish to show their affection for canines publicly and endanger public safety? Stray dogs cannot be killed as per the SC ruling, but the issue is, why should there be a law for mercy to stray dogs when all other animals can be butchered? When there is death penalty for humans, then why not for stray dogs, which are more violent than men or women. Just neutering and letting them loose in streets is not the answer. We need to review the colonial practices and make rules and laws, which are people friendly and in the interest of a majority of citizens. The common man is unable to take a stand just because dogs are pets of the high class and white-collared society. It is these very individuals, who eat chicken and non-vegetarian food and kill animals. – Rajiv Boolchand Jain, Zirakpur

Source – The Tribune

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