Force directed to prepare and execute action plan
PANAJI
The Goa government has constituted a three-member task force to prepare an action plan for rehabilitating stray dogs in shelter homes, a move that comes after the Supreme Court’s directive to clear Delhi-NCR roads of stray dogs within eight days.
The apex court, in a suo motu petition on Monday, directed the Delhi government and civic bodies in Gurugram, Noida and Ghaziabad to immediately remove stray dogs from all localities and house them in shelters. The order further stated that these animals must not return to the streets while granting eight weeks for the process to be completed.
While Rajasthan is also following suit by way of a High Court order, in Goa, Minister for Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services (AHVS) Nilkanth Halarnkar directed the department to constitute a task force.
The committee will be headed by AHVS Deputy Director Nitin Naik, with Assistant Director of the Veterinary Hospital, Sonsodo, Atanazia Fernandes, representing South Goa, and Assistant Director of the Government Poultry Farm, Ela, Charlette Fernandes, representing North Goa as members.
“..A task force is hereby constituted to deal with the issue of stray dogs and their rehabilitation in the shelter home,” AHVS Director Veena Kumar said in the order on Tuesday, citing the SC ruling and the minister’s instructions.
She further instructed the task force to prepare and execute an action plan for rehabilitating stray dogs in consultation with the concerned civic bodies.
As per official figures, Goa has around 56,000 stray dogs. The dog bite cases climbed 114 percent in two years, with 8,057 cases in 2022, 11,904 in 2023 and 17,236 in 2024. A total of 1,789 bite cases were recorded this January itself.
In April, a 20-month-old girl was mauled to death by a pack of stray dogs in Ponda. While the Department is responsible for supporting sterilization drives, the officials stated that municipalities and panchayats are tasked with executing ground-level control measures including maintaining records, tracking dog populations, responding to complaints and ensuring timely sterilization and vaccination of strays.
