No more a dog’s life, Chandigarh Admn for dropping stray tag

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 27

Dogs in Chandigarh may soon have their day! Hounded and virtually ostracised from society as “strays”, they may not be forced to lead a dog’s life and soon get a respectable tag. For, the Chandigarh Administration has undertaken before the Punjab and Haryana High Court that it will consider the suggestion of terming them “community dogs”.

The suggestion by advocate Tanu Bedi came before the Division Bench of Justice Ajay Kumar Mittal and Justice Anupinder Singh Grewal during the hearing of the “Save Sukhna” case. The “community dogs” label may eventually put to an end the lowliness, inadequacy and inferiority associated with the word “stray”.

Appearing before the Bench as amicus curiae or a friend of the court, Tanu suggested a decisive shift from the concept of “stray dogs” to the understanding of “community dogs”.

Tanu suggested carrying the dogs’ sterilisation process properly and area-wise. She also recommended immediate removal of exposed garbage across the city and shelter homes for dogs.

Referring to the presence of dogs at Sukhna Lake, Bedi recommended carrying out the process of counting all dogs before ensuring they were sterilised and vaccinated. She also recommended putting special marks on them and preventing the strewing of garbage at and near the lake.

She also suggested that dogs should not be fed at the lake. Rather, she was of the view that a particular area outside the lake promenade was required to be demarcated for feeding.

Displaying boards about “dos and don’ts” with dogs also found a mention in the list of suggestions. Tanu also asserted that caregivers from animal organisations were required to be encouraged and invited to adopt the dogs at the lake and feed them at the demarcated place by taking them there.

Other suggestions included ensuring their well-being and imparting occasional lessons to visitors for dealing with dogs at the lake.

“Senior standing counsel for the UT, Chandigarh, prays for time to examine the same and to assist the court,” the Bench recorded in its order before fixing March 7 as the next date of hearing in the case.

The rain-fed lake at the foothills of the Himalayas was created way back in 1958.