Stray menace dogs city roads
BIG PROBLEM There are around 60,000 stray canines in the state capital, where hospitals report some 100 dogbite cases every day; rate of sterilisation in Lucknow is just 3 or 4 dogs per day
In 2015 two youths lost their lives when a pack of dogs chased them while the former were riding a two-wheeler in Chaupatia area. Twice in past one month, stray dogs allegedly ate human bodies-once at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia hospital on August 27 and then early on Sunday at the Queen Mary’s Hospital when locals saw dogs pulling cloth in which the body of a newborn was left by some parents.
LUCKNOW: Stray dogs are on the prowl on the roads of the state capital these days. According to the Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) sources, there are about 60,000 such dogs in the state capital—home to 30 lakh people. Locals demanded massive stray dog catching drive after incidents of dog bite saw a rapid increase.
Dogs can be seen chasing kids going either to schools in the morning or parks in the evening. On resisting, they even bite them. Luck now hospitals provide injections for dog bite to about 100 individuals per day on an average.
According to the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2001, sterilisation is the sole way to control the population of stray animals. However, resentment is brewing among residents as the rate of sterilisation in Lucknow is just 3 or 4 dogs per day.
“When our kids go out to play, the first thing we need to watch is if there are dogs on the street,” shares Rakesh Kumar Sharma of Hussaidia. Dogs roaming inside parks, entering houses, sleeping underneath parking lots and in garbage dumps is a common sight. The complaint cell of the LMC receives around 75 complaints regarding stray dogs per week from different areas including Indira Nagar and Gomti Nagar. “I fell down from my twowheeler when dogs chased me one day,” says Rashmi of Vinay Khand. “When I return late in the evening, dogs are the ones I fear the most,” she adds.
“Their number is such that despite dog catching squad taking away a few of them, many more turn up the very next day,” claims a staff at Lohia Hospital where dogs reportedly entered the morgue last month. At the Balrampur Hospital also, the dogs find place in corridor near the post office on the campus.
“About 1500 stray dogs are sterilised every year but due to pressure from NGOs, it is difficult to perform duties,” claims chief veterinary officer, LMC, AK Rao.
Meanwhile, animal right activists say it is wrong to blame dogs for incidents where there is a human fault.
“In 2013, a girl was stated to be dragged and killed by dogs but when body was examined properly, marks of violence were clear and even rape was proved,” claims Kamna Pandey, the former Co-op member at the Animal Welfare Board of India. She alleges that often crime is committed and then dogs are blamed to avoid punishment.
“Even in the case reported on Sunday, the crime was committed by the couple who left the body outside Queen Mary’s Hospital but dogs were blamed. The big question is what was done to find who left the body there and what action was taken against them?” she asks.
Hospitals keep on requesting municipal corporation to catch dogs from their campus. A Balrampur Hospital doctor said that the LMC people take away stray dogs but even then the problem persists.