Put leash on stray dog menace: Amritsar Vikas Manch

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, January 17

After the recent incident in which a four-and-a-half-year-old Chanda was killed by stray dogs near Malawali village on January 6, the Amritsar Vikas Manch (AVM) demanded a solution to the problem of stray canines.

The AVM stated that apart from attacks on humans, stray dogs had also been causing several accidents. The NGO’s patron Charanjit Singh Gumtala said they had earlier given a written request to the Municipal Corporation demanding that it must find a solution to the problem. “It seems that the MC is not serious for the issue as it has failed to take any concrete steps to solve the problem,” said Gumtala, adding that the MC has even failed in beginning the registration of pet dogs.

“Considering the huge population of stray canines, even if a sterilisation programme is started immediately, it would take years before all the stray canines are sterilised. With no efforts being madein this regard, the stray dog population is only increasing,” said Gumtala.

The AVM reasoned that as dogs have a high fertility rate and produce multiple offsprings, the canine population, if unchecked would rise exponentially in the coming years. While demanding the government to take immediate action, the AVM stated that the stray dog population was also causing accidents especially with two-wheelers.

“The dogs, pets and stray dogs excrete on roads and it looks really unhygienic. Sometimes, when dogs get killed under the wheels of heavy vehicles, their carcasses keep lying there for days and it causes trouble for nearby localities,” said Gumtala.