Canine menace: Stray dogs at Company Bagh keep morning walkers at bay

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Amritsar, August 2

The famous Company Bagh or Ramdas Garden, the city’s lungs and centre of its heritage, seems to have lost its charm thanks to the stray dog menace.

Despite tall claims by the municipal corporation (MC) and attempts made periodically to check strays population through sterilisation drives that failed, the issue remains the same. Morning and evening walkers keep away from Company Bagh despite it being the only green space offering natural environs to the people.

There has been a massive increase in the number of stray dogs in the city. But mostly, the children’s park and litchi garden inside the Company Bagh have become a shelter for aggressive stray dogs who follow and bark at passersby every now and then. There have been instances of dog bites and attacks on pedestrians as well. Children, women and the elderly avoid going for a walk in the garden due to the stray dog menace. After several complaints, the MC had initiated a sterilisation drive in December 2018. Earlier, the MC had started such a drive in March 2017 but failed to achieve success. A similar drive was also initiated in July 2016. Meanwhile, the population of canines increased from 15,000 to 40,000.

Now, the stray dog population has increased manifold and the biggest hurdle in keeping a check on stray dogs from entering public parks is the fact that the MC lacks any shelter or safe space for them. In the absence of any shelter, strays roam freely on streets and in public parks. The situation remains the same in Rose Garden, another public park.

No shelter

The stray dog population has increased manifold. The biggest hurdle in keeping a check on stray dogs from entering public parks is the fact that the municipal corporation does not have any shelter or safe space for them. The situation remains the same in Rose Garden.