MALAPPURAM: A 65-year-old man was mauled to death by a group of stray dogs on the Bharathapuzha bank near Kuttippuram in Malappuram on Tuesday. Sankaran of Vadakkekalathil house at Edachillam near Kuttippuram was taking an evening walk near the river when the incident happened.
A group of youngsters who were playing football near the river found Sankaran lying on the sands with blood splattered around.
They tried to take him to a government hospital in Thrissur but he died on the way. “He left for the walk around 4pm. It seems that five to six stray dogs attacked him,” a resident said. Local residents said the waste dumped on the river banks attracts stray dogs to the area.
They also urged the authorities to take measures to clean up the banks and reduce the dog population by sterilisation.
“Many people use the area for morning and evening walks. Also, many including children use the area as a playground. The authorities should take immediate measures to end the stray dog menace,” another resident said.
Change laws to save elderly from strays, says ex-DGP
Expressing his anguish over the Kuttippuram incident in which an elderly man was killed by a pack of street dogs while walking on the sandbanks of Bharathapuzha, former DGP Jacob Punnoose said he has stopped walking on the roads fearing dogs. “If we try to fight off an attacking dog using a stick, we will be judged guilty. If the person is a policeman, he will be suspended.
As a retired DGP, I decided not to violate this dog justice,” he said in a Facebook post. Observing that everything should have a limit, Punnoose said if animals become a threat to humans, then protection should be given to humans. If needed law should be changed, he said.
“We have seen dogs that kill and eat humans in James Bond films. Now, elderly people are increasingly falling prey to dog menace,” he said.