Follow SC guidelines
On Friday the Supreme Court issued fresh measures to tackle the issue of stray dogs in institutional areas like educational centres and hospitals, and directed that such canines need to be trapped and should be moved to designated shelters.
A three-judge special bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N V Anjaria passed a slew of directions in the stray dogs case, including asking the authorities to ensure removal of cattle and other stray animals from highways and expressways, and their relocation to designated shelters.
The bench directed the authorities to prevent the ingress of stray dogs into the premises of government and private educational institutions and hospitals, etc., to prevent dog bite incidents.
The court was candid enough to order that stray dogs picked up from such institutions shall not be released back in the same place.
The bench asked the authorities, including the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), to undertake a joint drive to identify stretches of highways where stray animals are frequently found. The directions from the apex court will continue to be issued on this issue as the matter has again been fixed for further hearing on January 13.
The apex court’s directions on stray dogs need to be implemented with utmost dedication not only in the national capital but elsewhere as it had expanded the scope of the stray dogs case beyond the confines of Delhi-National Capital Region, and directed that all states and Union territories be made parties in the matter.
Ironically, Jammu and Kashmir is one such place where the stray dog issue has been making headlines for many years now. The region has witnessed huge increase in te number of dog bites and other related issues that crop up due to the increased number of stray dogs.
Notably, a total of 2,12,968 dog-bite cases have been reported across the Union Territory between 2022 and 2025, with Srinagar district alone accounting for 36,406 cases, the highest among all districts.
According to district-wise data placed on record, Kashmir Division accounted for a total of 1,14,498 cases, while Jammu Division reported 98,470 cases during the same period. After Srinagar, Baramulla recorded the second-highest number of cases at 18,563, followed by Budgam (9,382), Kulgam (6,612), Bandipora (5,367), Pulwama (3,426), Kupwara (3,594), Ganderbal (3,338), Anantnag (2,359), and Shopian (1,357).
Although the Animal Birth Control and Anti-Rabies programme is being run in Srinagar, but officials say that stray dog menace is being tackled in accordance with the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023, framed by the Animal Welfare Board of India.
Presently, the sterilisation and vaccination operations are conducted at three designated centres — Tengpora, SKUAST-K Shuhama, and the upcoming Ahal Chitterhama Centre, which is 90 per cent complete and will soon become operational with the capacity to sterilise or immunise 1,800 dogs per month.
Controlling the stray dog population is a gradual process and the administration needs to be committed to year-round sterilisation and vaccination campaigns to prevent the spread of rabies and reduce dog-bite incidents, besides the number of stray dogs.
With the total number of dog-bite cases in Jammu and Kashmir crossing two lakh in just three years, the issue needs out of the box solutions as well. As of now the government should fully implement the SC directions so that some relief may be felt on ground.
