An urban menace [Picture source]
A pan-India urban problem, conspicuous yet hardly addressed properly, is that of stray dogs. The menace of dog-bite, and even death resulting from it as recent incidents in Mumbai, Bangalore and elsewhere have proved, is on the rise. But there is no ready solution in sight because the municipal authorities, who are supposed to catch the dogs and sterilize them in dog pounds are found wanting.
They cannot be blamed much, pitted as they are against the powerful love-for-animals lobby. A few days back the newspapers carried a picture of celebrity canine lovers like Debasree Roy and Tapas Paul marching on the road to express solidarity for the cause of not doing cruelty to animals.
Pity they carried cute doggies everyone would like to cuddle, instead of stray dogs. The message is simple.
Whatever the NGOs, People For Animals (PFA) or Love and Care for Animals would like to tell us from rooftops, nobody wants to touch the ‘untouchable dogs’, but that doesn’t mean they would spare any effort to denounce any ‘wrong’ done to them even if fellow human-being suffer because of them.
I do not count myself among the branded animal lovers. I do not wear it on my sleeves to advise others that come what may, you cannot do any harm to stray dogs. Because I know if I’m bitten by one, I stand to suffer from a dreaded disease. Since I’m not like Mahatma Gandhi or Mother Teresa, I therefore strongly believe that there must be some steps to control population of stray dogs on city streets if only for the safety of people.
KMC has a dog pound at Dhapa Math Pukur off EM Bypass. As this news reports, KMC has handed over its management to PFA nearly 10 years ago. Another at Behala is now run by Love and Care for Animals.
The Dhapa dog pound is in despicable condition. Not surprising, since one needs money and ability to run such affairs. It’s one thing to pick faults of others, quite another to do it oneself faultlessly. PFA of course points finger at non-caring attitude of KMC, which may be true. But pray tell me, which agency will at own cost run an establishment dictated by others?
The result is pretty obvious as the report explains. From what Surojit Ghatak, dog staff chief of KMC says, “We attach more importance to either mass complaint or complaints lodged by councilors regarding sick dogs or similar problems”, it is clear as daylight that canine problem is here to stay for foreseeable future.
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