“Sterilization does not stop rabies. Even if the dogs are immunized, that won't stop them from mutilating children.”

Supreme Court on relocation of stray dogs in Delhi, Latest News:

A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court on Thursday (August 14) reserved order on the pleas to stay the directions passed by a two-judge bench on August 11 to relocate stray dogs into designated shelters/pounds.

The three-judge bench, hearing the matter today, comprised Justice Vikram Nath, Justice Sandeep Mehta and Justice NV Anjaria.

On August 11, the two-judge bench, comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R. Mahadevan, issued directions related to the stray dog menace, taking suo motu cognizance.

However, yesterday on August 13, the suo motu case relating to stray dogs was shifted to the three-judge bench, after some lawyers mentioned before the Chief Justice of India that the directions passed by the two judge bench conflicted with the previous orders passed by other benches.

 Today, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, for the Government of NCT of Delhi, said that there are many cases of children dying due to rabies after dog bites.

“Sterilization does not stop rabies,” Solicitor General said, adding, “Even if the dogs are immunized, that won’t stop them from mutilating children.”

He further said that 37 lakhs dog bites were reported in 2024 alone, which is an average of about 10,000 dog bites every day. Rabies deaths were 305 for the same year, he said.

About 20,000 rabies deaths are reported every year, as per WHO data, Solicitor General said.

Drawing a sharp comparison, he said, “Only four or five species of snakes are poisonous. But we don’t keep them at home. Nobody is saying kill dogs. They need to be separated. Kids are not able to play outside or go to school.”

Solicitor General said that children are unable to go out to play in the open and that the court will have to find a solution. “A vocal minority view as against the silent suffering majority view,” he said.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for an NGO, said, “The question is, has the Municipal corporation built shelter homes for dogs? Have the dogs been sterilised? Now, the dogs are being picked up. However, the order states that once sterilised, the stray dogs should not be left out in the community.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal seeks to stay on the August 11 order of the two-judge bench order.

Countering, Solicitor General, Kapil Sibal said, “This is the first time I hear the Solicitor General say don't look at the legislation which occupies the filed. There are the ABC rules. There is a Parliamentary legislation. That has to be complied with. How do you comply with? Who has to comply? The Municipal Corporation, what have they been doing over the years? Have they built shelter homes? Since they have not been sterilised, dog numbers have increased. Since they have no owners, the community is taking care of them. Where are the shelters? Where are the pounds? They will be culled."

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi also opposed the August 11 order, saying, “Dog bites exist, but there is zero rabies death in Delhi this year. Of course, dog bites are bad, but you cannot create a horror situation like this.”

Singhvi also said that the August 11 suo motu order ignored the earlier orders passed by the Supreme Court, which disapproved picking up of dogs in large numbers and held that the ABC rules have to be strictly enforced. He noted that at least 6 previous orders have been ignored by the two-judge bench.

Senior Advocate Siddarth Dave submitted that the two judges passed the order only based on the assertions of the Solicitor General and the amicus curiae and without hearing the animal rights activists.

The two-judge bench on July 28 took suo motu cognizance of a news article published in The Times of India. Later on August 11, it passed the directions.

The judge bench passed the directions on August 11 on the suggestions of Gaurav Agrawal, the Amicus appointed by the Supreme Court, and Tushar Mehta, the Solicitor General.

“What we have been able to gather after hearing both the learned counsel is that the situation is extremely grim. Immediate steps need be taken to take care of the menace of dog bites leading to rabies,” the August 11 order read.

The August 11order said that  the Amicus 'furnished' the the Judges with some information and the same reads as, "On the website of Press Information Bureau, data of number of dog bites for the years 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 [January] have been published. In the year 2024, there were 37,15,713 reported dog bites in the country. In Delhi alone, there were 25,201 dog bites. In the month of January, 2025, in the city of Delhi, the number of dog bites were 3,196. The cases of dog bites have increased over the last 3 years as per the table below. If figures of January, 2025 are any indication, the cases of dog bites are increased by 50%."

Order also shared a data on Dog Bite Cases Reported by States/UTs (Source: IDSP)

The directions passed by the two judges' bench on August 11 are:

• The Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT), the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) and authorities of NOIDA, Ghaziabad, Gurugram and Faridabad shall at the earliest start picking up stray dogs from all localities, more particularly the vulnerable localities of the city as well as areas on the outskirts. How to do it, is for the authorities to look into. For this, if they have to create a force, they shall do it at the earliest. However, this should be the first and foremost exercise to make all localities within the State and its outskirts free of stray dogs.
• There should not be any lethargy or compromise in undertaking this exercise. If any individual or any organization comes in the way of forceful picking up of the stray dogs and rounding them up, and if it is reported to us, we shall proceed to take the strictest of actions against any such resistance which may be offered. We are issuing these directions keeping only one thing in mind and that is the larger public interest. Infants, young children, aged should not at any cost fall prey to such dog bites that have the propensity to lead to one of the deadliest diseases known to mankind, if not the most i.e., rabies. The action should inspire confidence in the minds of people, young and old that they can move freely and safely on the roads and vicinity of their own homes without any fear of being bitten by a stray dog or a pack of dogs. No sentiments should be involved in this entire exercise. This should be the first step in the process.
• The Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and the appropriate authorities of NOIDA, Ghaziabad, Gurugram & Faridabad are directed to immediately create dog shelters/pounds and report to this Court the creation of such infrastructure all over the National Capital Region (NCR), within a period of eight weeks from today.
• The dog shelters/pounds should have sufficient personnel to sterilize, deworm and immunize stray dogs and also for looking after the stray dogs who would be detained there and not released on the streets/ colonies/ public places. The dog shelters would be monitored by CCTV to ensure that no dogs are released or taken out.
• We are mindful of the fact that the exercise of rounding up and relocation of the stray dogs in the shelters and pounds carries concerns over the well-being of such stray dogs. We are sympathetic to their lives as-well. Accordingly, we make it clear to all authorities concerned and the personnels deployed at such shelters / pounds, that at no stage should these dogs be subjected to any mistreatment, cruelty or deplorable standards of care. In lieu of this, we direct all the concerned authorities to ensure that there is no overcrowding at the dog shelters / pounds, and all measures shall be taken promptly for avoiding such a situation. The stray dogs who are brought to these shelters / pounds shall not be starved, and it shall be the duty of the concerned officials / authorities to ensure that they are adequately and regularly fed. The stray dogs who are brought to these shelters / pounds shall at no point of time be left completely unmonitored. In this regard, the concerned authorities must ensure that at least two responsible personnels are present at the shelter / pound at all times and proper duty schedule should be drawn up to ensure the same. Apart from the above, timely medical care should be provided by trained veterinarians to all the stray dogs, and the vulnerable and weak stray dogs should be accommodated separately within the shelter / pound as far as possible.
• We further clarify that it would be open to the concerned authorities to decide the viability of implementing an adoption scheme in respect of the stray dogs that would be kept at the shelters / pounds. However, any such adoption must take place only after a careful consideration, and in terms of the Standard Protocol for Adoption of Community Animals dated 17.05.2022 issued by the Animal Welfare Board of India, and any other condition that the concerned authorities find necessary to impose for such adoption to ensure that the entire exercise envisaged by us, is not defeated. At the cost of repetition, we make it clear, that no such adoption, if any, should result in the re-release of a stray dog back on to the streets. If we find even a single infraction of such kind, we will proceed to take the strictest of action against the official responsible as-well as the individual.
• Since this is a progressive exercise i.e. the dog shelters would have to be increased over a period of time, authorities concerned shall begin by creating dog shelter(s) for say 5,000 dogs in the next six-eight weeks.
• All the Authorities, referred to above, are directed to maintain records of daily stray dogs captured as-well the number of dogs housed in shelters homes/dog pounds. Such records shall be produced before us on the next date of hearing. However, what is important is, without which this entire exercise that we have undertaken may go futile, that not a single dog picked up from any part of the locality shall be released back on the streets/public spaces. If we come to know that this has happened, we shall take stern action in this regard.
• We clarify that in this entire exercise, the abovementioned records shall be maintained regularly by the concerned authorities, such that in the event this Court finds any infraction of the directions issued herein, necessary action shall be taken. In this regard, proper measures should be taken for earmarking the stray dogs who have been captured, for the purpose of later identification such that none of them are released back on to the streets.
• We direct the Authorities, referred to above, to create helpline number within a period of one week from today so that all cases of dog bites are immediately reported. Action must be taken to round up/pick up/catch the dog(s) within four hours from the complaint being received. Any resistance offered by any individual or organizations in this regard will be viewed strictly and we may proceed for contempt against such individual or organizations coming in the way of this Court.
• The stray dogs shall be captured, sterilized, dewormed and immunized as required by Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023 and as noted above, shall not be released under any circumstances.
• The Authorities concerned shall inform the victim of the medical authorities so that the victim is treated immediately.
• Report in this regard shall be presented before us on the next date of hearing.
• Availability of rabies vaccines is a major concern especially genuine vaccine. The Authorities concerned, more particularly, the Government of NCT of Delhi is directed to put detailed information about the places where such vaccines are available, full stock of the vaccines and the number of persons who report for treatment on monthly basis.

 (For more news apart from 'Supreme Court reserves order on pleas to stay directions on relocation of stray dogs in Delhi,' stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman)