SC Directs Delhi Govt To Put Stray Dogs In Shelter Homes, Warns Of Penalty Against Any Objection

The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Delhi government and civic bodies to pick up strays from all localities and keep them at dog shelters and called the stray dog menace in the city as "extremely grim".

The apex court also mentioned that if any person or organisation comes in the way of picking up of stray dogs by the authorities, strict action will be taken against them.

Development Minister Kapil Mishra assured that the city government will implement the court's directions in a time-bound manner.

Supreme Court Order Of Delhi Stray Dogs

The Supreme Court bench comprised of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan passed the judgement as in order to tackle the menace of dog bite incidents in the national capital. ,

The bench said as of now, the dog shelters be created to accommodate around 5,000 stray dogs and sufficient personnel should be deployed there to sterilise and immunise the canines.

It said the stray dogs be kept at dog shelters and not be released on streets, colonies and public places.

"We are issuing these directions keeping larger public interest in mind," the bench said, adding that infants, young children should not at any cost fall prey to stray dog bites leading to rabies.

It also directed the authorities to create a helpline within a week so that all dog bite cases are reported immediately.

The top court had on July 28 taken suo motu cognisance of a media report of dog bite incident leading to rabies in Delhi.

Delhi Minister Responds

Responding to Supreme Court's order to shift stray dogs in the city to shelter homes, Development Minister Kapil Mishra said that the implementation will take place in a time-bound manner.

Mishra said the verdict will pave the way to free Delhi from the fear of rabies and stray animals.

In a post on X, Mishra said, "Under the leadership of CM Rekha Gupta, the Delhi government's animal department will work with all agencies to study this order and move forward in the direction of its proper implementation." He said the court order will be implemented in a time-bound manner with special attention paid to proper welfare of the stray animals.