Stray dog unleashes terror, attacks 11 in Sector 15

Rajinder Nagarkoti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 22

A stray dog attacked 11 persons, including senior citizens, in Sector 15 today. Though the dog was caught in the afternoon, the residents were not happy with the efforts made by the MC team.

The Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has failed to find a permanent solution to the stray dog menace in the city.

Kanhaiya, who works at the MC public toilet in Sector 15-D, was the first one to be attacked by the stray dog at 4 am while he was sleeping outside the toilet block. He said the dog attacked his left leg and he had to be treated at the Sector 16 hospital.

Virender Gupta (45), a rickshaw-puller, who was attacked by the dog at 5 am, said he was sleeping in the corridor of the Sector 15-D market when he was attacked by the dog. He even punched the dog but it did not leave his foot, he said. Echoing a similar view, Sukhdev Kumar, a resident of Sector 15-A, who was attacked in the right leg, said it was 6.30 am and he was in the market opposite his house when the dog suddenly attacked him. He tried to save himself from the dog, but to no avail, he said. 

VM Chopra (87), a resident of Sector 15-D, said he was standing outside his house when at 10.30 am, the dog attacked him. The dog’s teeth were so sharp that they made a hole in his slippers, he said. 

“There are 20 to 30 stray dogs at Cheap Houses in Sector 15-D that always attack people here,” he said. 

Similarly, the same stray dog attacked 40-year-old Mohammad Irshad, a motor mechanic in Sector 15 market. He said he was working when he was attacked by the dog. Ram Ashish, a rickshaw-puller, said the dog attacked him in the head when he was sleeping at 5 am. Now, there is panic in the entire market, he said. While a majority of the victims went to the Sector 16 hospital for treatment, some others went to private clinics in Sector 15 and nearby sectors. 

Number of stray dogs up

The number of stray dogs on Chandigarh streets has soared significantly over the past five years. In 2007, the number was 5,713, whereas the latest census by the UT Animal Husbandry Department in 2014 put the figure of stray dogs at 7,847. The population of stray dogs here has risen by about 36 per cent.

What rules say

According to the Centre-notified Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules 2000 (ABC Rules), there is a ban on the killing of stray dogs, even the ferocious ones. In the past five years, 6,948 dogs have been sterilised and vaccinated against rabies. The Administration has completely banned commercial breeding of dogs in the city.

No dog pounds so far

While the stray dog menace continues to haunt city residents, the higher authorities are sitting over a plan to construct dog pounds in Chandigarh. In view of the increase in dog-bite cases, the UT Administration, in January 2009, had announced to set up two dog pounds (Animal Birth Control Hospital) to free the city of the stray dog menace. So far, the MC and UT Administration have only been exchanging letters and nothing concrete has come out of it.

No dedicated helpline

There is no dedicated helpline for dog-bite cases in the city. In case of emergency, there is no helpline where a person can seek help. Though the MC has a helpline No. 155304, it is not functional round-the-clock.

210 cases in one week

In the last one week, there were 210 dog-bite cases in the city. These cases were reported at the Anti-rabies Clinic in Sector 19 and 38 and the GMSH-16 in the last one week.