Country suspends ‘catch-and-keep’ plan for strays in favour of a more ‘holistic’ approach
India’s top court has scaled back an order to clear Delhi’s streets of stray dogs, in a decision that was cheered by animal rights supporters.
Earlier this month, the supreme court ruled that all strays picked up in Delhi’s capital region would be confined to shelters after sterilisation and vaccination, and not returned to the streets. The goal was to protect people – particularly children – from dog attacks and rabies, which remains endemic in India.
Critics had said the plan was unrealistic. Veterinarian Harjun Singh said: “The cost of constructing proper shelters would be prohibitive. Rounding them up and putting them in cages would have been another way of condemning them to death.” Delhi, a city of 35 million people, is estimated to be home to as many as 1 million stray dogs.
In a new ruling on Friday the same court suspended the “catch-and-keep” plan, recommending a more “holistic” India-wide approach. Dogs, the court said, should be sterilised, vaccinated, dewormed and returned to their neighbourhoods, with only those showing aggression or suffering from rabies kept in shelters.
