After SC order, Delhi launches sterilisation, vaccination drive for stray dogs

NEW DELHI: The Delhi government will launch a sterilisation and vaccination drive campaign under the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules 2023 after the Supreme Court orders on stray dogs. The Supreme Court recently ordered that the stray dogs must be released after sterilisation and immunisation, except those infected with rabies or exhibiting aggressive behaviour.

According to the sources, out of 78 government veterinary hospitals, 24 will be converted into vaccination centres. The Supreme Court has recognised the Lucknow ABC programme as India’s national benchmark for humane and effective stray dog management.

The Lucknow model is based on a ‘capture, sterilise, vaccinate, and release’ model hailed as humane, scientifically grounded, and effective. The Supreme Court directed municipalities nationwide to create dedicated feeding zones and helplines for strays, both of which have been integral to Lucknow’s approach for years. It also expanded the scope of the case to all states and union territories, with the intention of creating a uniform pan-India policy for managing the stray dog population.

Moreover, NGOs, private veterinarians, and volunteers will participate in the campaign, with an emphasis on humane solutions, according to the sources. According to the 2016 survey, Delhi has approximately eight lakh (8,00,000) stray dogs, the sources informed.

A three-judge bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and N V Anjaria ruled that stray dogs must be released after sterilisation and immunisation, except those infected with rabies or exhibiting aggressive behaviour. The court stated that infected stray dogs shall be sterilised and immunised, but under no circumstances shall they be released back into the streets. As far as possible, they shall be kept in separate shelters or pounds after sterilisation and immunisation.

“The dogs that are picked up shall be sterilised, dewormed, vaccinated, and released back to the same area from where they were picked up,” it said while modifying the August 11 order, which directed that stray dogs shall not be released. The bench also restricted public feeding of stray dogs and directed the MCD to create dedicated feeding spaces in each municipal ward.

Meanwhile, the Shimla Municipal Corporation (SMC), one of India’s oldest civic bodies, has begun fitting stray dogs in the city with GPS-enabled collars carrying QR codes to record their location, vaccination status digitally, and other details, alongside an ongoing anti-rabies vaccination drive.

Mayor Surinder Chauhan stated that the initiative aims to reduce rabies-related fatalities and enhance public safety. “Our vaccination and sterilisation drives have been going on for some time. Now, to minimise rabies cases where earlier, deaths were often discovered to have been caused by a dog bite only after the fact, we have started anti-rabies vaccination for dogs. So far, 2,000 dogs have been vaccinated”.

“Alongside, we are attaching QR code collars that, when scanned, will reveal the dog’s position. Dog lovers and animal welfare groups can also track them. For aggressive dogs, we will attach a red tag to identify and handle them separately. We are educating the public, working with social organisations, and starting a massive sterilisation campaign,” he said.

“We believe Shimla is the first city in the country to take such an initiative. Organisations from Goa, Mumbai, Maharashtra, Patiala, and Himachal Pradesh’s Rampur have joined us. This programme will also produce the first dog census in India, digitising details of each stray. Once the programme concludes, the Chief Minister will formally close it”, Chauhan added. (ANI)