"Streets Must Be Safe": P Chidambaram Backs Top Court's Stray Dogs Order

Veteran Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP P Chidambaram has welcomed the Supreme Court's tough order to check the stray dog menace in Delhi-NCR and said the directions need to be implemented in every city across the country.

"The Supreme Court's directions on stray dogs must be implemented in every city and town. It is not difficult to round up stray dogs and put them in proper dog shelters. All that a town needs is government or municipal land on the outskirts of a town; levelling the land and fencing it; and putting the dogs in the enclosed space," the former Home Minister said in a post on X shortly after the top court asked authorities to immediately take steps to move dogs from residential localities in Delhi-NCR to animal shelters to check rising cases of dog bites.

Mr Chidambaram said these shelters must have adequate provisions to provide dogs with food and water. "There are cost-effective ways to find the food and water for the dogs," he said.

The Supreme Court's directions on stray dogs must be implemented in every city and town

It is not difficult to round up stray dogs and put them in proper dog shelters

All that a town needs is government or municipal land on the outskirts of a town; levelling the land and…

— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) August 11, 2025

"ABC methods must and can be thought of in due course, but the first task is to round up the stray dogs and put them in a protected place. Streets must be free and safe for all people, especially children and elderly people," the Congress leader added.

ABC methods or Animal Birth Control Rules focus on sterilising and vaccinating stray dogs to control their population and prevent the spread of rabies. They also aim to address the welfare of the animals and prevent human-dog conflicts.

The Supreme Court today directed civic authorities in the Delhi-NCR region to take immediate steps to remove stray dogs from residential neighbourhoods.

The bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan is hearing the matter after taking note of a news report on the rising incidents of stray dog attacks in Delhi, leading to rabies deaths.

"We are not doing this for us, it is for the public interest. So, no sentiments of any nature should be involved. Action should be taken at the earliest," Justice Pardiwala said. "Pick up dogs from all localities and shift them to shelters."

When Justice Pardiwala sought Solicitor General Tushar Mehta's opinion on the matter, he was told that a site in Delhi had been identified for relocating stray dogs, but the plan was stalled after animal rights activists obtained a stay order.

"All these animal activists, will they be able to bring back those who have fallen prey to rabies? We need to make streets absolutely free of stray dogs," the bench said, adding that it won't allow any adoption of stray dogs either.