- By Shibra Arshad
- Mon, 11 Aug 2025 12:26 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
The Supreme Court of India has ordered that all stray dogs in the national capital, Delhi, and neighbouring districts should be moved to shelters. The SC, on Monday, said that stray dogs should be shifted away from residential areas and any organisation that blocks this exercise will face strict action. The verdict comes amid the rise in dog bite cases and deaths due to rabies.
The SC bench, featuring Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan, is hearing the matter as they took note of the rising cases of rabies deaths after stray dog attacks. The court further said that it will only hear arguments from the centre and will not entertain any petition from dog lovers or any such organisations.
"We are not doing this for us, it is for the public interest. So, no sentiments of any nature should be involved. Action should be taken at the earliest," Justice Pardiwala said. "Pick up dogs from all localities and shift them to far-off places. For the time being, forget the rules," he told advisor Gaurav Agarwal. Agarwal suggested steps that can be carried out to prevent the dog menace.
"All these animal activists, will they be able to bring back those who have fallen prey to rabies? We need to make streets absolutely free of stray dogs," the bench added, saying that it won't allow any adoption of stray dogs either.Civic bodies in Delhi and other neighbouring districts like Noida, Ghaziabad, Gurugram have been ordered to pick up stray dogs and shift them to shelters and update the court within 8 weeks.
The court further said that shelters must have professionals who can deal with stray animals. The court added that medical treatment, like sterilisation and immunisation, should be carried out, and the dogs should not be let out. The court also ordered that CCTVs must be installed to ensure that dogs cannot move out of the shelters. The civic authorities have also been instructed to come up with a helpline for reporting dog bite cases.
"Round up all stray dogs from all localities, whether sterilised or unsterilised," the court said. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said, "We cannot sacrifice our children just because of a few dog lovers."
The court has given Civic authorities a free hand on how they want to go about the job and even advised them on forming a dedicated force if they want.