Karnataka Girl, 4, Dies Of Rabies Four Months After Stray Dog Bite

A four-year-old girl, who was bitten by a stray dog nearly four months ago in Karnataka's Davangere, died of rabies at a hospital in Bengaluru on Tuesday.

The girl, identified as Khadeera Banu, had been undergoing treatment at Bengaluru's Rajiv Gandhi Hospital.

The girl was mauled by a stray dog when she was playing inside her house in April. The dog bit her face and other body parts, leaving her critically injured. She was immediately rushed to a local hospital by her family and was later transferred to Bengaluru for advanced care. Despite multiple efforts to save her, she died.

The incident brings to light the recent cases of dog bites leading to rabies deaths. Earlier this month, the Karnataka Lokayukta Justice BS Patil pulled up the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) for its failure to tackle the growing menace of stray dog attacks in the city. The Lokayukta revealed findings from an independent probe led by Dr Vamshikrishna, Superintendent of Police, Urban Division - which highlighted the BBMP's failure to establish observation homes for aggressive dogs.

Last week, the Supreme Court ruled that all stray dogs in Delhi-NCR and adjoining regions must be shifted away from residential localities to shelters in view of the rising cases of dog bites leading to rabies deaths. According to the court, the dog shelters must have professionals who can tackle dogs, carry out sterilisation and immunisation, and not let the canines out. The court also warned that any organisation blocking it will face the "strictest action".

Many animal lovers challenged the order and carried out protests on the streets against it.

Days later, another bench of the Supreme Court heard the petitions challenging the earlier order and asked why authorities in several areas started picking up the animals even before the order became public - which has now been reserved.