The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to modify its November 25 order directing the removal of stray dogs from institutional areas such as schools, hospitals and other public facilities, while also making
it clear that the direction against releasing them back into those areas would remain in force.
The apex court gave this verdict on the stray dog case while dismissing all the pleas submitted.
The bench stressed that prolonged inaction by authorities had allowed the problem to spiral into alarming proportions.
The court observed a “discernible absence of efforts to expand and quantify infrastructure in proportion to increasing population of stray dogs” and criticised states and local authorities for carrying out sterilisation and vaccination drives without proper planning.
“It defeats the objects of the framework. Had states acted with due foresight, the present situation would not have assumed such alarming proportions,” the court said.
The bench further remarked that the “inaction on effective implementation of ABC framework” had directly contributed to the worsening stray dog menace.
“Prolonged inaction and absence of institutional commitment to effective implementation of ABC Framework has contributed significantly to the persistence as well as aggravation of the problem which has now assumed dimensions warranting urgent and systemic intervention,” the court observed.
The Supreme Court also issued fresh directions to states and Union Territories for stricter implementation of the Animal Birth Control (ABC) guidelines. It directed all states and UTs to establish at least one ABC centre in every district with trained doctors to ensure effective sterilisation and vaccination measures.
