How a locality checked the menace

LUCKNOW: Almost a year before the dog menace in Sitapur, the Mohammadpur locality in Bareilly faced a similar problem. But the locals took simple measures and managed to control the attacks effectively.

According to the residents, over a dozen kids were killed in the area between 2015 and 2017. Alarmed by the trend, the people started taking steps to prevent the attacks.

The first measure they took was to remove dogs from their locality, even pets. “Pet dogs attracted other dogs that used to attack our children,” said Md Zubair Khan, a resident of the area who parted with his pet dog after his 10-year-old nephew was killed by a feral dog in February, 2017.

The local administration also did its part by taking strict measures to alleviate other causes that aided dog population. They issued guidelines for proper waste disposal from meat shops. “We made it mandatory for all meat shop owners to deposit their waste with dedicated municipal waste collection vehicles. The waste is then disposed of properly outside residential areas,” said MP Singh, sub divisional magistrate (SDM) of the area

The forest department was also roped in to capture and sterilise dogs in the area. With these measures, no dog attack incident has been reported from the area in the last eight months.

WHILE RESIDENTS PARTED WITH PET DOGS, THE ADMINISTRATION ISSUED GUIDELINES FOR PROPER WASTE DISPOSAL FROM MEAT SHOPS.