Supreme Court Clarifies: Roads Must Be Free of Stray Dogs for Public Safety
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The Supreme Court has emphasized that its November order aimed to ensure public safety by removing stray dogs from institutional areas, not killing them. A bench of justices observed that the presence of stray dogs poses dangers beyond dog bites, particularly on roads and in high-footfall public spaces. They noted that the court's intervention is focused on enforcing the Animal Birth Control (ABC) framework, not dismantling it. The bench pointed to systemic failures by municipal authorities, who have failed to implement the ABC Rules, leading to a crisis. Despite repeated directions, many states have not filed affidavits explaining steps taken to implement sterilization, vaccination, shelter creation, and waste management. The court warned that states that have not complied will face strict action. Animal welfare groups and institutions argued that blanket removal and non-release of dogs from institutional areas ran contrary to the statutory mandate under the ABC Rules. They sought the constitution of expert committees to assess institution-specific solutions and infrastructure constraints. The bench, however, said it could not ignore the statutory failure of authorities or allow public safety concerns to be indefinitely postponed. The court will continue to hear stakeholders, including victims of dog attacks and animal welfare groups, before issuing further directions. The bench made it clear that it will not ignore the public safety concerns and will take necessary steps to ensure that roads and institutional premises are kept free of stray dogs.
