BENGALURU: The BMRCL stopped the Metro train service in its tracks for almost 15 minutes at Dasarahalli station to save a stray dog on Tuesday evening. Sadly, even after a successful rescue operation by NGO Karuna, the hungry and dehydrated dog died on his way to the shelter house at Hebbal, due to Bengaluru’s infamous traffic jams.
The meticulous rescue mission took place at 6.45pm after a Samaritan passenger spotted the dog. Soon after the passenger alerted the station controller, the control room was informed about the situation. Necessary permissions to stop the services in order to facilitate a rescue operation was taken.
A rescue team from Karuna NGO was quickly called in for help. Subsequently, power was disrupted and the train was stopped as volunteers launched a rescue mission. As curious passengers looked on, the dog was rescued and bundled into a vehicle for the shelter home.
The stray dog was probably wandering around in search of food and shelter. Unfortunately, he found himself stuck between the third rail and running rail on the green line (north-south corridor). Being hungry for hours, he was resting.
Vasanth Rao, spokesperson for BMRCL, told Express, “It is extremely sad that the dog died on his way to the shelter house. I am told that he was dehydrated and hungry. He must have got stuck in there a day before and we may have sighted it very late. Not a single passenger complained. Everybody prayed for the dog to be saved.” He added that the vehicle carrying the dog was stuck in traffic and it died before reaching the shelter.
Once the tracks were cleared, the power was switched on and services resumed as usual. In a similar incident in January 2015, BMRCL officials had halted services for 8 minutes at Mantri Square station to rescue a kite. Three years ago, more than 10 snakes were rescued from near Bengaluru Santhe, at Swami Vivekananda Metro Station. The snakes had taken shelter in a vacant 10-acre plot behind the Santhe.