Bangalore:
The increasing number of stray dogs in Domlur area in Bangalore is giving sleepless nights to residents.
Every night the dogs in the area get together for some old fashioned car chasing and howling, which creates a frustrating din amongst the people in the area.
Also in danger are pedestrians and two wheeler riders, who come home after 11 pm as they are chased mercilessly by dogs nipping at their ankles.
Dogs may be considered man's best friend but unfortunately dog bite incidents appear to be increasing year after year.
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike dog catching squad seems to have forgotten about the Domlur area entirely. To add more to the misery, these dogs feast on garbage dumped on the road side which inspite of efforts by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, still is a major problem in some lanes of the ward.
"I work night shift and getting chased by dogs has become an everyday battle for me, I am scared to think of what I will do if one of them bites me someday," says Rishi Basu, a resident. He adds that running away from the dogs is not the correct choice to make.
"If you stand there they will just stare at you and growl. The moment you start moving they chase you. In sheer numbers that is scary," he says.
"They start howling around 4 am every day, it has played havoc with my entire sleep schedule," says Trisha, a resident. "My house is on the main road and this just worsens the problem, I cannot remember the last time I slept an entire night in the past few months," she adds.
"Just a few days back the dog catching squad came and caught three dogs, but they were sterilised and left back according to the rules. I am aware of the nuisance but there is nothing we can do about it," says Geetha Sreenivas Reddy, Councillor for the ward.
Dog catching in the city has seen much opposition from animal lovers inspite of assurances that the dogs would not be culled. Estimates by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike put the number of stray dogs in the city around 2.5 Lakh.