PANAJI
The ongoing debate on how to tackle the stray dog problem, sparked by a recent Supreme Court diktat to confine them to shelters, found a loud echo at the gram sabha meeting in Taleigao on Sunday.
After a sustained debate on stray dogs and cattle proliferating on Taleigao’s streets, posing danger to motorists, Sarpanch Maria Fernandes sought “cooperation” from villagers to tackle the problem.
She said stray dogs will be sterilised and also claimed that cattle from St Cruz and other nearby areas make their way to the village, adding to the problem. She said the collaboration of NGOs will be sought to deliberate with people feeding the stray dogs and a consensus built on how to resolve the problem.
The Gram Sabha, which concluded without any tempers running high, saw several villagers raise the issue of stray dogs as well as stray cattle posing a problem for residents and motorists.
Some of the villagers accused the panchayat of abject failure to resolve the issue of strays. Fernandes, however, refuted the allegations, saying sterilisation of the stray canines has already been started by the panchayat together with the NGO PAWS, which also operates in neighbouring Panaji and several other areas.
“Many people in Taleigao feed street dogs at night. This brings the strays to a single spot, causing a problem,” Fernandes said, adding that discussions will be held with the individuals who are feeding them to try and find a resolution.
“People will be urged to feed the dogs outside their homes and not in public places,” she said, adding that to solve the problem of stray dogs and cattle, the cooperation of the public is paramount.
