In the aftermath of the death of four-year-old Pradeep who was mauled by street dogs in Hyderabad’s Amberpet, the Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department (MAUD) of Telangana has issued orders to prevent such an incident from repeating. The order, issued on February 22, directed all municipal commissioners to implement a set of 13 instructions in order to control the population of street dogs and prevent street dog bites. Municipal authorities have been asked to access real time dog bite reports from the Institute of Preventive Medicine, Narayanaguda, and Fever Hospital, Nallakunta. The reports should be used to identify the places of dog bite incidents and conduct immediate special drives for catching and sterilising dogs.
MAUD also asked municipal commissioners to deploy more dog catching teams and achieve 100% sterilisation of street dogs. Steps to increase the capacity to conduct Animal Birth Control measures are to be taken. Quick assessment and identification of high density street dog areas should be made possible with the help of Resident Welfare Associations (RWA), Slum Level Federations (SLF), and Town Level Federations (TLF). The order also required the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation should draw up a plan to contact each one of these associations under its jurisdiction and create awareness regarding the feeding of street dogs, and reporting about rogue street dogs. This should be completed in the next one month.
Orders were issued to publicise the helpline number 040-21111111, which attends to the public’s complaints about street dogs. In addition, citizens should be encouraged to report dog attacks and unsterilised dogs in their area on the My GHMC App and Citizen Buddy mobile applications.
Municipal commissioners were instructed to hold meetings with owners of banquet halls and hotels, and discourage them from disposing of meat in public places. “You are directed to take stringent action against such hotels, restaurants, halls, meat shops, hospitals, hostels, and other establishments that dispose of their garbage on the streets/public places and to ensure that proper garbage disposal practices are adopted within these establishments to prevent gathering of street dogs,” the order read.
MAUD directed authorities to introduce a programme in all schools to educate children about the appropriate behaviour protocols while dealing with street dogs. It said, “Utilise the services of Self Help Groups, sanitation staff, and Mission for Elimination of Poverty in Municipal Areas (MEPMA) staff for promoting awareness about street dog behaviour and educate the community in dealing with street dogs by distributing the pamphlets detailing the "Dos" and "Don'ts" of behaving with and around the street dogs in both government and private schools.” Billboards highlighting the same should be installed at suitable locations too, the order said. It also instructed that awareness about responsible pet ownership and adoption of street dogs be given to the general public.
Meanwhile, the Telangana High Court has taken a suo-motu cognisance of the four-year-old’s death and made Chief Secretary, MAUD Principal Secretary, GHMC Commissioner, GHMC Deputy Commissioner (Amberpet), GHMC Veterinary Officer, Hyderabad district collector and member secretary of Telangana State Legal Services Authority the respondents in a public interest litigation.