Supreme Court orders removal of stray dogs from Delhi-NCR streets

The Supreme Court on Monday directed civic bodies across Delhi-NCR to immediately capture all stray dogs and relocate them to shelters, citing serious concerns over public safety and the rising threat of rabies. A bench comprising Justices J. B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan described the situation as “grim” and stressed that urgent measures were needed to protect children, women, and the elderly. “We have to make the streets completely free of stray dogs. The time for action is now,” the court observed.

The order applies to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), and civic agencies in Noida, Gurugram, and Ghaziabad. These authorities have been instructed to begin removing stray dogs from their jurisdictions and transfer them to designated shelters. Where shelters do not already exist, the agencies must construct them without delay and submit an infrastructure report to the court within eight weeks.In a significant order, the court instructed municipal bodies and other agencies to work in coordination to create adequate shelter facilities within the stipulated time frame, ensuring that the canines are removed from public spaces.

The bench also warned that any organisation or individual obstructing the removal of stray dogs would face strict legal consequences. The directive was issued during a hearing on the growing menace of stray dogs in urban areas, during which Solicitor General Tushar Mehta urged the court to step in with decisive orders. He highlighted the urgent need for preventive action to curb rabies cases and reduce attacks on pedestrians.

The SC directed that stray dogs be kept at shelters and not released on streets, colonies, or public places. The Supreme Court had last month taken suo motu cognisance of a media report about incidents of dog bites leading to rabies. It said every day, hundreds of dog bites were being reported in the city and on its outskirts, leading to rabies and ultimately, children and the aged were falling prey to the dreadful disease.