THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With protests by local residents intensifying, the Karumkulam panchayat has decided to initiate action against a landowner for allegedly allowing an unauthorised dog shelter to function on his property in a densely populated residential area.
The panchayat committee, which met on Wednesday, also decided to submit an official report and complaint to the district collector and the district police chief, seeking urgent intervention to relocate the dogs from the panchayat. Karumkulam panchayat president Pushpam Vincent said a notice would be served immediately on the landowner to shut down the shelter operating on his land.
“The landowner is the custodian of the property, and we will not allow the shelter to continue functioning in our panchayat. The stray dog situation here is already very serious. Recently, 26 people were attacked by stray dogs. We suspect that dogs from other areas are being brought here and released, which may be triggering these incidents,” said Vincent.
He added that the mayor had publicly admitted to relocating dogs to the shelter and extending support for its maintenance.“Normally, stray dogs are released back to the same location from where they are caught, after vaccination and sterilisation. In the same manner, these dogs too should be taken back to their original locations.
The district collector should initiate action in this regard,” he said. Vincent also said that the shelter operator had not produced any official documents before the panchayat so far. “If the operator fails to produce the required documents, we will proceed with further action,” he added.
However, the BJP-led council at the corporation alleged that the protest was politically motivated. Mayor V V Rajesh said the shelter had been functioning at the site for the past eight years and that there had been no earlier complaints or protests against it.