NEW DELHI: The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has issued circular directing NGOs working on canine sterilisation and immunisation to prioritise the removal of “ferocious” stray dogs from vulnerable spots and to keep detailed records, including CCTV footage.
Zonal veterinary officers have been asked to work closely with NGOs and ensure animals are handed over to the nearest Animal Birth Control (ABC) centres.
The circular instructs that dogs known to be aggressive or with a history of biting be the first to be picked up from sensitive locations such as hospitals, schools, government offices, parks and residential colonies. Every animal taken into custody must be logged through the 311 mobile application, and NGOs and veterinary teams are required to submit daily area-wise reports to the officials concerned, the notice said. ABC centres run by partner NGOs will maintain CCTV monitoring and archival records of sheltered animals to ensure traceability.
A Supreme Court order on August 11 had asked Delhi-NCR authorities to begin relocating stray dogs “at the earliest” and to immediately create dog shelters, with a direction to report back on the establishment of such infrastructure within eight weeks. The MCD’s circular appears designed to operationalise that timeline while establishing systems for documentation and accountability.
Resident welfare associations have already begun mapping stray dogs in housing societies and neighbourhoods, sharing photographs and contact details with civic authorities.
Saurabh Gandhi, general secretary of United Residents of Delhi (URD), welcomed the apex court’s intervention, saying the move would reduce incidents of dog bites while ensuring the animals are safely housed and fed at shelters.
The URD has urged residents’ bodies to provide numbers, photos and other details of stray dogs in their areas, as well as records of dog-attack incidents to the authorities. Gandhi said RWA members will compile these lists and the authorities’ responses for presentation before the court.