Kerala High Court Directs State To Take Action Against Municipal Corporations For Any Failure To Implement Action Plan Against Stray Dog Problem

In light of the recent increase in instances of dog bites by community dogs, the Kerala High Court has directed the State Government to submit the details of the progress of mass vaccination drives and setting up of shelters for stray dogs by the municipal corporations in the state.

A Division Bench of Justice A. K. Jayashankaran Nambiar and Justice Gopinath P directed the State to provide details of the steps taken by the Municipal Corporations to comply with the government order dated September 15, 2022, which was issued pursuant to the directions of the court to resolve the issues caused by stray dogs.

The government order had envisaged a detailed 4-step Action Plan, comprising of the following steps - Mass Vaccination Drive, Setting up Rehabilitation Centres for stray dogs and abandoned dogs, Sanitation/Cleaning Drive for waste disposal, and I.E.C. (Information Education and Communication) Campaign. A three-tier organization was also proposed to be set up for coordinating the vaccination drive - the State Level Committee, the District Level Committee, and the Local Body Level People's Committee.

The court also directed the State to take action against the Municipal Corporations that have not complied with the government order:

“After collecting the information, and on finding any lapse on the part of the Municipal Corporations concerned, the State Government shall also initiate action against those found in breach of the directions in the Government Order, and report before this Court as regards the action taken in that regard," the court said in its order.

The court in its order dated September 14, 2022, had observed that the State Administration was obligated to protect the citizens from the attacks of ferocious dogs by identifying and containing such dogs and removing them from public places:

“The State Administration must remind itself of the fact that in its role as a welfare state and as a parens patriae of the citizenry, it is obligated to protect the citizens from the attracks of ferocious dogs by identifying and containing such dogs and removing them from public places,” the court had said.

Case Title: In Re Bruno v. Union of India

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