FOR THE FIRST TIME, stray dogs—those scruffy, hungry, and often ignored creatures on our streets—have found themselves at the centre of protests. Who would have thought that the same dogs we shoo away from our gates would one day become the cause people march for? As they say, “Every dog has his day”— perhaps, their day has finally come.
It all began when the Supreme Court took suo-motu notice of the growing menace of stray dogs in the National Capital Region, Delhi. The word “menace” may offend animal lovers, but the statistics cannot be ignored.
And yes, the problem is real. Over 37 lakh dog bite cases were reported in India in 2024 alone according to the National Centre for Disease Control. Behind the figure are stories of real humans, stories of children who still fear dog bite, stories of family mourning a life taken by rabies, stories of elderly morning walkers who still fear being chased by packs of dogs.
Although these instances cannot be ignored. But locking every stray dog in a shelter is not the answer to this problem. Shelters should be for the sick, the injured, the abandoned and not for every animal who happens to live on our streets. Otherwise, we only swap one cruelty for another: today, a child dies of a dog bite; tomorrow, the dogs themselves will die in overcrowded, filthy shelters.
But why in the first place has the incidence of dog bites risen in recent years? Stray dogs have always lived near human settlements, but in the last two decades, open spaces where they roamed freely have vanished under concrete. This has pushed them into tighter contact with people, often in crowded areas, increasing the chances of conflict.
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While we protest the undignified living of these dogs inside shelter homes, we must ask—do they have a dignified life outside them? Step onto any street and you’ll see the answer. A dog curled up beside a tea stall is chased away with a splash of dirty water because customers don’t want it near their feet. Tiny pups flinch at every honk, while passersby drive them off with loud claps or even a kick for daring to be in the way. For them, every street is a place they are told they do not belong.
But they aren’t the only ones left unheard. In the same streets where dogs are chased away, you’ll find homeless children sleeping on pavements, elderly beggars ignored as if invisible. Isn’t it ironic that we can fill the streets for animals yet walk past humans who too are in need of compassion?
The truth is, empathy cannot be selective, the wellbeing of one species depends on respecting the dignity of all. Until we learn to share our cities, not just with each other but with every living being, coexistence will remain a slogan, not a reality.
(The author is Editor, TheRise.co.in, and graduate of The Print School of Journalism. The author can be reached at – sneha20j@gmail.com)
(The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Ukhrul Times. Ukhrul Times values and encourages diverse perspectives.)