Delhi Looks For Middle Path On Stray Problem

New Delhi: Delhi govt is looking for a long-term solution to the stray dog menace, chief minister Rekha Gupta said on Wednesday. She was speaking at the inauguration of development work in Pitampura. At the event, an elderly lady raised the issue of stray dogs."I am working on solving the problems due to stray dogs. The issues involve both the people as well as the speechless animals...Govt is creating a platform to bring together the residents as well as those who care for these animals. There is a law, and the stray dogs cannot be kept in shelters or displaced from the streets where they live," Gupta said."Govt is searching for a long-term solution in which neither people nor animals are discomforted. It is a policy matter, which is work under progress," she added.Delhi High Court recently directed govt to frame a policy on the rehabilitation of stray dogs at an institutional level so that they are phased out from public roads and streets. The court requested the chief secretary to also call a meeting of all the stakeholders concerned to take a policy decision for the removal and rehabilitation of stray dogs on the streets by accommodating them in institutional shelters.Former Union minister and BJP functionary Vijay Goel, who is leading a campaign to find a solution to the stray dog menace, blames the Centre, state govts, and local bodies for the festering problem. According to his estimates based on different reports, there are 12 crore stray dogs in the country, and of these, around eight lakh are in Delhi.On March 27, Congress functionary Karti P Chidambaram met PM Narendra Modi to highlight the problem and rabies-related deaths. He called for the creation of a national task force, underlining the need for improved resources and technology to manage the situation more effectively.