HYDERABAD: Gauri Vandana can barely conceal her angst as she describes her visit to an Animal Birth Control (ABC) centre. “Dogs were crammed into cages as small as 5 x 3.5 feet, with up to five animals confined together. Food and water bowls were mixed with urine and faeces, and in one instance, a dead dog lay inside a cage alongside two sterilised adult dogs,” Vandana, the founder of AASRA Animal Shelter, tells TNIE.
Her words stand at one end of a debate that has sharpened across Hyderabad following recent Supreme Court directions on stray dog management.
At street level, views are equally divided. On a narrow lane in Mehdipatnam, auto driver Mohammed Sajid gestures towards a group of dogs sleeping near a closed shop. He says the animals have lived there for years and are known to residents. According to him, they do not pose a threat unless provoked, and rounding them up “like criminals” is unjustified. Care, he argues, should replace confinement.
A few kilometres away in Gachibowli, IT professional Ankita Reddy recounts a different reality. She says children in her colony have been chased by packs of dogs, particularly in the mornings. While she does not want the animals harmed, she believes safer population management is necessary.
These accounts underline the fault line running through the city. As the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) works under court-mandated timelines, Hyderabad has emerged as a test case, exposing the tension between human safety and animal welfare, legal obligations and ground realities, and whether the existing ABC framework can align with newer safety-focused directives.
National order, local consequences
The Supreme Court’s renewed intervention on stray dogs followed a suo motu case triggered by the death of a six-year-old girl in Delhi due to rabies after a dog bite. Citing rising incidents of dog attacks across the country, the apex court sought stronger measures to protect public spaces, especially those frequented by children and patients.
On August 11, 2025, the court initially directed authorities in Delhi-NCR to remove stray dogs from streets, set up shelters and prevent their return. After objections from animal welfare groups, the bench modified its order on August 22, allowing the release of dogs after sterilisation and anti-rabies vaccination under the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023, except in cases involving rabid or aggressive animals. Feeding of community dogs was restricted to designated areas, and the directions were extended to all states and Union Territories.
The most consequential order came on November 7. The court prioritised safety in what it described as “high-risk institutional areas” — schools, colleges, hospitals, medical colleges, sports complexes, bus depots, railway stations and similar public spaces. It directed authorities to fence such premises, appoint nodal officers, remove dogs found within them, ensure availability of anti-rabies vaccines, conduct awareness programmes and improve waste management.
The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) was asked to issue uniform Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) within four weeks, while chief secretaries and the Union government were directed to file compliance reports within eight weeks. The matter is scheduled to be heard again in January 2026.
While the court framed the directions as a safety measure, it also left space for humane treatment by reiterating the role of sterilisation and vaccination. How this balance would be achieved was left largely to states and civic bodies.
AWBI’s SOP and the shelter question
Following the November 7 order, the AWBI issued a national SOP focused on institutional areas. Municipal bodies and district administrations were instructed to ensure the immediate removal of stray dogs from enclosed premises such as schools, hospitals, transport hubs, sports complexes, religious places and tourist sites.
The SOP mandated perimeter fencing of at least six feet, controlled entry points, strict waste management and the appointment of trained nodal officers. Dogs removed from these areas were to be sterilised and vaccinated under the ABC Rules but could not be returned to the same premises. Instead, they were to be shifted permanently to AWBI-approved shelters meeting specified standards for space, staffing, sanitation and veterinary care.
Public education was made a core component. Posters explaining dog behaviour, bite prevention and first aid, along with the national rabies helpline number (15400), were to be displayed prominently. Compliance was to be monitored by district magistrates and reported to the AWBI, with the Supreme Court retaining oversight.
For cities like Hyderabad, the SOP immediately raised questions. How many shelters exist? Do they meet AWBI standards? Is there land, funding and trained manpower to house dogs permanently, and in what numbers?
High court intervention and allegations of cruelty
As implementation began in Hyderabad, AASRA Animal Shelter approached the Telangana High Court, alleging that dogs were being picked up in violation of the ABC Rules and kept in inhumane conditions.
During hearings, GHMC’s standing counsel submitted that the high court’s interim order dated November 28 was affecting compliance with the Supreme Court’s mandate, which provided eight weeks to remove stray dogs from institutional premises and shift them to shelters after sterilisation and vaccination.
Clarifying its position, the high court said its order did not restrain GHMC from acting under the Supreme Court’s directions. However, it stressed that implementation must follow a step-by-step process. Authorities were asked to file a detailed status report based on a compliance checklist covering preparedness, infrastructure, shelter capacity and procedural safeguards.
Senior counsel appearing for the petitioners argued that Hyderabad lacked designated shelters altogether. “What GHMC is calling shelters are actually ABC centres,” he said, contending that confining dogs there for extended periods amounted to cruelty.
Gauri Vandana told TNIE that vaccinated, unvaccinated, sick, sterilised and unsterilised dogs were being housed together, increasing the risk of disease outbreaks. “Only anti-rabies vaccines were given. There was no seven-in-one vaccination to prevent other contagious diseases. These are not shelters,” she said.
Senior advocate Vijaya Devi told the court that the rush to meet the eight-week deadline had led to a focus on paperwork rather than welfare. Another petitioner said authorities had skipped preparatory steps such as fencing institutional premises and appointing nodal officers, moving directly to dog removal without adequate planning or capacity.
Activists also flagged what they described as a deeper issue: the long-standing weaknesses in the ABC programme itself. Pradeep, associated with the Animal Warriors Conservation Society, said ABC often failed because it was treated purely as a government exercise. “Without community participation, identification of dogs and waste management support, the programme cannot succeed,” he said.
GHMC defends actions
GHMC officials have rejected allegations of cruelty, maintaining that the civic body was acting in accordance with Supreme Court directions. A senior official from the Veterinary Wing said claims of inhumane treatment were “untrue”.
On fencing and nodal officers, he said the GHMC Commissioner had written to the heads of educational institutions, directing them to nominate senior faculty members or professors as institutional nodal officers. He added that GHMC would also appoint a nodal officer at the municipal level to ensure coordination.
The contact details of all designated nodal officers would be displayed prominently, he said, adding that GHMC would remain in continuous coordination with them to monitor progress and submit periodic reports, while veterinary officers would regularly maintain and update records.
According to the official, around 2,000 dogs have been sheltered so far. The GHMC Commissioner has also written to zonal commissioners to identify additional land parcels to accommodate dogs removed from institutional premises.
Alongside sheltering, the official said GHMC continues sterilisation under the ABC programme and is conducting Indie dog adoption drives. Public awareness campaigns on safety, responsible behaviour and coexistence are also being run.
On the health front, the official said the Commissioner had written to the Health and Family Welfare Commissioner to ensure adequate stocks of anti-rabies vaccines in all government and private hospitals.
He also highlighted Telangana’s compliance record. “When compliance reports were sought earlier by the court, only West Bengal and Telangana submitted detailed reports. Telangana reported that
over 85% of dogs have already been sterilised, which is among the highest in the country,” he said.
Contradictions and data gaps
Legal experts, however, say the issue goes beyond immediate implementation. Shreya Paropkari, advocate and one of the country’s leading voices in animal protection law, pointed out that Hyderabad has five ABC centres, but none has secured the mandatory project recognition certificate from the AWBI, which is contingent on infrastructure, staffing and operational standards. “AWBI inspections and approvals have not happened, yet these centres function using public funds,” she said.
The advocate traced the uneven implementation of ABC over two decades. Although sterilisation became mandatory for municipalities after 2001, monitoring remained weak. Supreme Court judgments between 2009 and 2024 consistently reaffirmed ABC, culminating in the 2023 Rules, which introduced monitoring committees at central, state and district levels.
“In Telangana, these committees were not constituted despite directions,” Paropkari said. Although a state-level committee was formed in 2023 after high court intervention, it has not met since, she added, citing the absence of a permanent budget head.
Data reliability is another concern. “Even dog bite data is unreliable,” she said. Under the National Rabies Control Programme, standardised reporting is required, but hospitals often record cases generically as “dog bites” without distinguishing whether the animal involved was a stray or a pet. In addition, multiple visits for rabies vaccination are sometimes logged as separate bite incidents, distorting the overall figures and making it difficult to accurately assess the source and scale of the problem.
On the latest Supreme Court directions, Paropkari described them as ambitious but contradictory. “The judgment prioritises grievance redress and keeping institutions free of stray dogs, which is understandable. But legally, the directions contradict the ABC Rules on relocation and no-release provisions. Without shelters, manpower and funding, the mandate becomes unworkable,” she said.
Advocate Mishi Agarwal of Humane World for Animals India echoed these concerns, citing experiences from Uttarakhand and Lucknow. Knee-jerk measures, she said, fail to resolve human–dog conflict. “ABC has to be systematic and sustained. Most districts do not even have basic ABC facilities, so permanent sheltering of large numbers of dogs is not feasible,” Agarwal said.
Maneka Gandhi, animal rights activist and former Union minister, questioned the legal consistency of the approach. “The ABC Act remains in force. The Supreme Court cannot uphold a law and issue directions that directly contradict it,” she told TNIE, adding that large-scale relocation is likely to increase aggression and bite incidents as new, unvaccinated dogs move into vacated territories.
The cost of compliance
Beyond law and ethics lies the question of feasibility.
Maneka Gandhi said five states — West Bengal, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh — have informed authorities that they cannot implement the Supreme Court’s directions due to the lack of shelters and budgetary support.
She said constructing a single shelter costs several crore and requires lakhs each month for operations, including land, veterinary staff and maintenance. Despite ABC being in place for over 25 years, she noted, there has been no dedicated national budget for dog population management.
Advocate Paropkari said humane care costs are often underestimated. “Deworming three times a year costs about Rs 300 per dog; rabies vaccination Rs 700; feeding around Rs 40 per dog per day,” she said, excluding transport, manpower and medical care. “Multiply that by the number of dogs in a ward, and the budget requirement escalates quickly.”
GHMC officials say infrastructure is being expanded. The civic body currently operates five animal care shelters and is establishing three additional shelters. These include a new facility at Katedhan in the Charminar Zone and expanded shelters at Fatehullaguda in LB Nagar Zone and Mahadevpur in Kukatpally Zone. More than Rs 3 crore has been sanctioned for these works.
Officials also said additional land parcels are being identified following the merger of 27 municipalities with GHMC, and that all developments are being carried out in line with AWBI SOPs issued under the Supreme Court’s November 7 order.
Understanding aggression in community dogs and rabies
Veterinary experts stress that policy decisions must be grounded in science.
Dr Ajaykumar VN of Happy Pet Clinic, Madhapur, said aggression in community dogs arises from multiple factors — fear, past abuse, maternal instincts, territorial behaviour, pain or illness. “These triggers must be understood scientifically rather than viewed in isolation,” he said.
Sterilisation, he said, reduces sexual aggression and helps stabilise populations, with female sterilisation playing a key role. Anti-rabies vaccination builds herd immunity, lowering bite-related risk over time.
On rabies, Dr Ajaykumar said the viral disease affects the nervous system and appears in furious and paralytic forms, both fatal. However, it is completely preventable with timely treatment. “After a bite, wash the wound with soap and running water for at least 15–20 minutes. Vaccination should begin immediately, ideally within 24 hours. There is no safe waiting period,” he points out, adding that vaccines and immunoglobulin are available at government facilities.
Rising rabies toll and bite cases
Health data adds urgency to the debate. Records from Fever Hospital, Nallakunta, show rabies deaths in Hyderabad rose from eight in 2022 to 32 in 2025 (up to October).
A senior doctor said there was no shortage of vaccines or rabies immunoglobulin. “The problem is delayed reporting and incomplete treatment. Many dismiss minor scratches, or fail to complete the vaccination schedule,” he said.
Dog bite cases have also increased. Within GHMC limits, cases rose by about 35% between 2022 and 2024. Hyderabad recorded 31,141 cases in 2022 and 42,067 in 2024. Statewide figures rose from 92,924 to 1,21,997 in the same period. Officials caution that city figures may be inflated, as patients from across Telangana seek treatment in Hyderabad.
What lies ahead
Despite differences, experts across disciplines agree on one point: There is no quick fix.
Advocate Shreya Paropkari said sustained, scientific ABC implementation is the only long-term solution. Mishi Agarwal warned against fear-driven responses. Dr Ajaykumar said neutered, vaccinated dogs should be returned to the same areas to maintain territorial stability, alongside better waste management and public awareness.
Maneka Gandhi argued for large-scale investment. “If ABC centres were established in every district, with trained NGOs and adequate funding, dog populations would reduce sharply within two years and rabies transmission would fall close to zero,” she said.
As Hyderabad navigates court orders, public pressure and practical constraints, the challenge remains unresolved. The city’s response may well shape how India reconciles the competing demands of safety and welfare in its streets.
Data reliability questioned
Legal experts say concerns over data quality add another layer of complexity to the stray dog debate. Despite the National Rabies Control Programme prescribing standardised reporting formats, hospital records often do not distinguish between bites by pet dogs and those by street dogs. In addition, repeat visits for rabies vaccination are sometimes recorded as fresh cases, a practice that can inflate official figures and obscure an accurate picture of dog-bite trends