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Let BMC cull strays, state tells high court Shibu Thomas With over 50,000 cases of dog bite and 20 deaths every year, the state government on Friday told the Bombay high court that the BMC should be permitted to cull stray dogs. The state's admission came before a full bench of the court comprising justice S Radhakrishnan, justice D B Bhosale and justice Vijaya Kapse Tahilramani that is hearing the issue of whether to review a 1998 order banning the killing of stray dogs. The judges observed that neither killings of strays or mere sterilisations would be a solution. "The animals should be taken to dog pounds away from the city limits and residential areas,'' said the judge. The court has now ordered the setting up of monitoring committees to oversee the implementation of sterilisation programmes and submit a report to the court. As per the latest estimates, there are about six lakh stray dogs in the city and the suburbs. "The provisions in the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and in the BMC Act for the purpose of controlling the stray dog population is legal in view of the detailed statistics available regarding dog bites and the deaths on account of dog bites,'' said Mohan Paradupadhye, deputy secretary (urban development department). "The BMC must be permitted to cull stray dogs (as provided under the Act).'' This is a view that is being supported by organisations including the Maharashtra Law Graduates Association and the Goa-based People for Elimination of Stray Troubles. Other NGOs, including In Defence of Animals have opposed this plea. Solicitor General of India Goolam Vahanvati said that sterilisation was a "quicker'' solution. Vahanvati pointed out that rules under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals envisage formation of a committee to monitor and manage the problem of stray animals. The panel will have the power to order sterilisation of dogs, sheltering, vaccination and killing of terminally ill animals. Its powers also include commissioning a survey of stray dogs and taking steps to monitor dog-bite cases and initiate measures to tackle it. The committee will include the BMC commissioner, a veterinary doctor, a representative of the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and two animal welfare NGOs. Last year the BMC had allocated Rs 4 crore for the sterilisation programme, but the amount lapsed as the funds were unused. The state government said there were three dog pounds in the city and that it was difficult to provide for such pounds in each of the 24 wards due to a space crunch. shibu.thomas1@timesgroup.com URL : http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/ml.asp?Ref=VE9JTS8yMDA3LzA0LzIxI0FyMDA0MDE=&Mode=HTML&Locale=english-skin-custom |
| Also see : Animal Welfare, Zoo, Zoo : News Articles |
