'August 11 order returns': Supreme Court advocates on stray dog removal directive

New Delhi, Nov 7 (IANS) As the Supreme Court issued a series of directions to protect key public spaces from the growing menace of stray dogs and to clear highways of stray cattle and other animals, several apex court advocates on Friday said that the August 11 order "has come back again", calling the move "harsh" and "concerning".

Speaking to IANS, Supreme Court advocate Namita Sharma said: "The August 11 order has come back again. This is almost similar, but a slightly modified version of that earlier order. Now, stray dogs will be removed from all types of institutions — hospitals, schools, and bus stands — and relocated elsewhere. Officers will be assigned to ensure they don’t return. It’s a harsh order, but I still have some hope."

Advocate Vivek Sharma added: "Ultimately, the outcome is that all these voiceless will be removed. The Goa court had recently clarified that, as per the government records, there were only 372 dog bites in the past three years, but actual data shows 37,387 bites. So, today's order is a review of the old order without hearing any of the petitioners. It's not possible for the government to make shelter homes. I only hope that wisdom should come to the judges, on us, as animals are voiceless."

Supreme Court lawyer Sunil Lamba said: "The Supreme Court has ruled that all stray dogs and cattle on national highways must be immediately removed. The responsibility has been placed on the Public Works Department and municipal corporations to ensure their removal within eight weeks. The court has also directed that nodal officers will be accountable for enforcing the order."

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N.V. Anjaria, hearing the suo motu matter on stray dog management across the country, ordered that every educational institution, hospital, public sports complex, bus stand and railway station must be properly fenced to prevent the entry of stray dogs.

The Justice Vikram Nath-headed Bench asked the local municipal bodies to conduct regular pick-up drives from such premises and shift the animals to designated shelters after mandatory vaccination and sterilisation under the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules, 2023.

The apex court clarified that dogs removed from these public places should not return to the same spot, further directing periodic inspections to ensure that no stray dog habitat is allowed to develop within these premises.

The bench also ordered the immediate removal of stray cattle and other animals from highways, adding that such animals be shifted to designated shelters without delay.

"Chief Secretaries of all States and Union Territories shall ensure strict compliance with this. Otherwise, officers will be held personally responsible," ordered the apex court, seeking compliance status reports within eight weeks detailing the mechanisms put in place to implement the directives.

Earlier, on August 22, the Supreme Court had modified its August 11 directions, clarifying that captured dogs must be sterilised, dewormed, vaccinated, and released back to the same localities from where they were picked up — except those suffering from rabies, suspected to be rabid, or showing aggressive behaviour. At the same time, the Court prohibited public feeding of stray dogs on streets, mandated the creation of designated feeding points, and emphasised the need for a uniform national policy on stray dog management.

--IANS

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