Amritsar: No end to stray menace in Galliara around Golden Temple

Charanjit Singh Teja

Amritsar, July 25

Stray dogs have been troubling people in the Galliara around the Golden Temple in the walled city area. Thousands of devotees and locals, who visit the Galliara face inconvenience due to a large number of stray dogs roaming on the road and parks around Darbar Sahib.

The parks in Galliara have become a safe haven for stray dogs. Some regular devotees at Gurdwara Bibi Kaulan, Shiv Temple and Gurdwara Baba Attal feed dogs.

The parks in Galliara are being ignored by the local administration. Only a small section of Galliara is being maintained by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. The volunteers of Kar Sewa Bhuri Wale, who clean the surroundings of the Darbar Sahib, have also complained about the aggressive stray dogs.

Lovpreet Singh, a resident said, “Once the Galliara had beautiful flowers and fountains with beautiful lights. At present, due to the lackadaisical attitude of the authorities concerned, the entire area is in a state of neglect. The locals, who used to visit parks, fear dogs. Even devotees at the Golden Temple use routes other than Galliara to reach the holy shrine. The administration should restrict the entry of stray dogs in parks and Galliara.”

Gurdev Singh, another resident said, “Many stray dogs can be seen roaming around Gurdwara Baba Atal and in parks of the Galliara. Sometimes more than 10 dogs assemble at one point and start barking. The infightings between groups of canines creates panic among visitors. However, the problem of stray dogs is everywhere in the city. The administration should take steps to restrict the entry of dogs at tourist places.”

Officials of the Municipal Corporation claimed that sterilisation was the only solution to curb the population of stray dogs. They said a project to sterilise 20,000 dogs would start soon.