MCD will seek land from Delhi govt for setting up dog shelters

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi will seek land from the Delhi government to set up dog shelters in every zone of the city, following the Supreme Court's directions on stray dog management, officials said on Tuesday.

The move comes after the apex court, for the first time, permitted euthanasia of rabid, incurably ill or demonstrably dangerous stray dogs and directed authorities across the country to strengthen infrastructure to tackle the rising stray dog population.

''We are trying to rush it as much as possible. Wherever land is available, we will write a letter to the Delhi government in two or three days,'' an MCD official said, adding that the civic body was looking at land available with the Delhi government's Animal Husbandry Department, which runs veterinary hospitals in the city.

He further said that some of the 13 functional Animal Birth Control centres were already operating on Animal Husbandry Department land in areas such as Masoodpur, Bijwasan, Ghazipur, and Tigri.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday said the right to live with dignity includes the right to live freely without the threat of dog attacks as it dismissed pleas seeking recall of its earlier directions on relocation and sterilisation of stray dogs.

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and NV Anjaria said civic authorities may resort to euthanasia in areas where the stray dog population has reached alarming levels and where frequent bites or aggressive attacks pose a continuing threat to public safety.

The court clarified that such measures must be undertaken only after assessment by veterinary experts and strictly in accordance with the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023 and other statutory protocols.

It also directed authorities to augment infrastructure, particularly in institutional areas such as schools, hospitals, railway stations and sports complexes, where dog bite incidents have risen sharply.

MCD officials said the court's directions had now cleared ambiguity regarding the relocation of stray dogs from sensitive public spaces.

''Earlier, people used to say, 'don't pick them up from here'. Now it has been made clear that they have to be picked up,'' an official said.

The corporation was now planning smaller shelter facilities or ''kiosk centres'' across all zones, depending on land availability, the official said, adding that ''The effort is to build them in every zone. Depending on the land available, some may have capacity for 200 dogs, some 500 and some even 1,000.''.

According to the official, aggressive or biting dogs would be picked up immediately and housed temporarily for observation until larger facilities become operational.

Welcoming the Supreme Court order, MCD Standing Committee Chairperson Satya Sharma said the civic body was already working on a long-term strategy to tackle the stray dog issue.

''The corporation aims to establish at least one dog shelter in every zone to ensure safe shelter, treatment and care for stray dogs,'' Sharma said in a statement.

To strengthen sterilisation and anti-rabies vaccination efforts, Sharma said additional dog kennels would be set up at five new centres, with expansion of existing sterilisation facilities.

The officials said additional kennel work had already started at Bela Road and at the Bijwasan sterilisation centre in southwest Delhi.

The Bijwasan project, launched in April, is expected to increase accommodation capacity by 450-500 dogs every month. Fourteen new kennel units are being constructed there at an estimated cost of Rs 28 lakh.

The MCD had earlier announced plans to establish kennels at five new centres and expand infrastructure at five existing sterilisation facilities to accelerate sterilisation and anti-rabies vaccination drives.

The officials said around 750 feeding points for stray dogs had also been identified across the city, while a citywide microchipping and mass vaccination exercise was in process.

The proposed microchipping drive, for which tenders are expected soon, will for the first time include a comprehensive dog census to track vaccination, sterilisation and movement of stray dogs, they added.

On euthanasia, officials clarified that the provision already existed for dogs in an irreversible critical condition.

''If a dog is completely on life support, unable to recover and surviving only with support, there is already a provision for euthanasia,'' an official said, adding that any such process would be conducted only in the presence of Delhi government veterinary doctors.

According to official data, Delhi reported 52,867 dog bite cases between April and December 2025. The officials estimate the stray dog population in the capital at around eight lakh, though the actual number may be higher.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)