Supreme Court mandates shelters with CCTVThe top court on Monday also directed that dogs be detained in pounds, and the dog shelter would be monitored by CCTV mechanism to ensure that no dogs are taken out.It had directed the civic authorities in the Delhi NCR region — the national capital, Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurugram, Faridabad etc — to immediately build dog shelters, move stray dogs and update the court in eight days.The court went on to add that these shelters, must have professionals who can deal with dogs, carry out sterilisation and immunisation and the dogs should not be let out. “CCTVs must be installed to ensure that dogs cannot move out of the shelters. The civic authorities have also been instructed to start a helpline for reporting dog bite cases,” the court opined.The Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, during the course of the hearing, told the court, “We cannot sacrifice our children just because of a few dog lovers.”The court had earlier termed as “alarming and disturbing,” the growing menace of stray dog attacks and the resulting fatalities, as it had taken SMC over the serious issue and decided to hear the matter on its own.The Supreme Court had earlier taken suo motu cognizance (SMC) of a media report titled “City hounded by strays and kids pay price,” describing it as a “highly disturbing” news report. The court, in its July 28 order, noted that the report contained “extremely troubling details,” including accounts of hundreds of dog bite incidents in cities and peripheral areas, many of which resulted in rabies infections. “Ultimately, it is infants and senior citizens who are falling prey to this deadly disease,” the court observed.The case that prompted the top court’s intervention involved Chavi Sharma, a six-year-old girl from Delhi’s Pooth Kalan area, who was attacked by a stray dog on June 30. Despite receiving medical treatment, she succumbed to the infection on July 26.It is important to note that the power of suo motu cognizance is derived from Articles 32 and 226 of the Indian Constitution, which deal with the enforcement of fundamental rights, as well as Article 142, which grants the Supreme Court wide-ranging authority.SMC refers to a court taking action on its own initiative, without requiring a formal petition, complaint, or letter.
Source link
