Courtesy FIAPO: Ministry to amend rules, give more power to friends of strays
http://bloggers-bark.blogspot.com/2010/05/ministry-to-amend-rules-give-more-power.html
In what will be the first law-backed protection accorded to those who feed and help sterilise stray dogs — animal lovers who have been targeted in numerous cases in the city earlier— the Ministry of Environment and Forests is working to amend the existing Animal and Birth Control (Dog) Rules to validate the contribution of citizens who help enforce the rules.
As per existing laws, stray dogs are supposed to be sterilised and returned to their localities under the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules of 2001.
While this was supposed to be enforced by the municipal authorities, it has proved to be virtually ineffective with the rising dog populations and mounting hostility of city localities towards stray dogs.
This has given rise to furious debates in Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi on whether all stray dogs should be culled.
The proposed amendment now includes a "representative of the people who is a humanitarian or (a) well-known individual who has experience in animal welfare in the locality".
Another amendment proposes to further impetus for local residents in taking the Animal and Birth Control (Dog) programme to a locality level.
A monitoring committee will be set up, which will include representatives from the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), municipal authorities and a local representative who has the necessary "experience" of working for animal welfare in the locality.
"This amendment will validate and give official recognition to those who feed dogs and help sterilise them. This will also lead to greater public participation in the committees created for dog control. The committees will not be the exclusive domain of just municipal bodies or NGOs. Local residents can now take part," says Anjali Sharma, legal adviser to the AWBI, which is working with the MoEF on the rules.
This will address routine complaints put forth by various dog lovers who say they have been targeted, even attacked, for feeding dogs in their localities. In Delhi over the last year, several such complaints have been filed in police stations, with as many as seven such cases of harassment coming up in the High Court.
As per the High Court's directions, police protection has been provided to the seven litigants who said they were being attacked for feeding dogs. These residents also said that they were vaccinating and sterilising the dogs. The High Court then observed that feeding stray dogs was helpful for enforcement of the ABC rules.
The rules also address the issue of nuisance or rogue dogs, and how they can be dealt with if they attack humans.
Dog feeding sites identified in city, AWBI tells HCThe Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) has provided information to the Delhi High Court on Monday about its designated 'dog feeding sites'. These will be public areas where stray dogs can be fed to avoid conflict with other local residents who are not comfortable with dogs. These most typically will be service lanes or areas outside a dog lover's home. Sites have been identified at Nev Sarai, Kamla Nagar, Roop Nagar, Kasturba Gandhi Marg and two in Vasant Kunj.ENS
Thanks and Regards
Santosh Rajashekar
In what will be the first law-backed protection accorded to those who feed and help sterilise stray dogs — animal lovers who have been targeted in numerous cases in the city earlier— the Ministry of Environment and Forests is working to amend the existing Animal and Birth Control (Dog) Rules to validate the contribution of citizens who help enforce the rules.
As per existing laws, stray dogs are supposed to be sterilised and returned to their localities under the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules of 2001.
While this was supposed to be enforced by the municipal authorities, it has proved to be virtually ineffective with the rising dog populations and mounting hostility of city localities towards stray dogs.
This has given rise to furious debates in Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi on whether all stray dogs should be culled.
The proposed amendment now includes a "representative of the people who is a humanitarian or (a) well-known individual who has experience in animal welfare in the locality".
Another amendment proposes to further impetus for local residents in taking the Animal and Birth Control (Dog) programme to a locality level.
A monitoring committee will be set up, which will include representatives from the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), municipal authorities and a local representative who has the necessary "experience" of working for animal welfare in the locality.
"This amendment will validate and give official recognition to those who feed dogs and help sterilise them. This will also lead to greater public participation in the committees created for dog control. The committees will not be the exclusive domain of just municipal bodies or NGOs. Local residents can now take part," says Anjali Sharma, legal adviser to the AWBI, which is working with the MoEF on the rules.
This will address routine complaints put forth by various dog lovers who say they have been targeted, even attacked, for feeding dogs in their localities. In Delhi over the last year, several such complaints have been filed in police stations, with as many as seven such cases of harassment coming up in the High Court.
As per the High Court's directions, police protection has been provided to the seven litigants who said they were being attacked for feeding dogs. These residents also said that they were vaccinating and sterilising the dogs. The High Court then observed that feeding stray dogs was helpful for enforcement of the ABC rules.
The rules also address the issue of nuisance or rogue dogs, and how they can be dealt with if they attack humans.
Dog feeding sites identified in city, AWBI tells HCThe Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) has provided information to the Delhi High Court on Monday about its designated 'dog feeding sites'. These will be public areas where stray dogs can be fed to avoid conflict with other local residents who are not comfortable with dogs. These most typically will be service lanes or areas outside a dog lover's home. Sites have been identified at Nev Sarai, Kamla Nagar, Roop Nagar, Kasturba Gandhi Marg and two in Vasant Kunj.ENS
Thanks and Regards
Santosh Rajashekar
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