Child rights organisation in Kerala appeals to Supreme Court for action on stray dog attacks

The Kerala Child Rights Organisation has petitioned the Supreme Court for ‘immediate directions’ such providing stray dog kennels or culling them to effectively reduce the threat of canine attacks, particularly on children.

The Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR) has asked the supreme court for permission to join a 2019 lawsuit the state government filed regarding the stray dog problem.

the child rights organisation, which also released data on dog attack cases in the state, stated, ‘Stray dogs can pose a risk to public safety by attacking people or other animals. A confined facility or culling of stray dogs can reduce the risk of such incidents to an extent.’

According to the World Health Organisation, India accounts for 36% of all rabies-related deaths worldwide, which results in an estimated 59,000 human deaths each year.

‘India also accounts for 65 per cent of the deaths due to rabies in the South-East Asia region. The National Rabies Control Program reported 6,644 clinically suspected cases and deaths of humans caused by rabies between 2012 and 2022. According to the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, almost 96% of rabies cases in India are caused by stray dogs – and so India leads the world in rabies deaths,’ the child rights body said.

According to the data, 3,951 stray dog attacks were reported in Kerala in 2020, down from 5,794 in 2019.

7,927 dog attack cases were reported in the state in 2021, 11,776 in 2022, and 6,276 as of June 19, 2023, according to the data.

‘That very recently, a shocking incident in which an 11-year-old autistic child, namely Nihal, was mauled to death by a pack of stray dogs at Kannur on June 11, 2023,’ it stated, noting that a similar incident occurred in Kerala’s Kottayam District last year in which a 12-year-old minor died as a result of a stray dog attack.

Seeking judicial intervention to curb such cases, it said, ‘Stray dogs can carry diseases that can be transmitted to humans, such as rabies. Confined facilities for stray dogs can help to control the spread of such disease. Stray dogs can cause a nuisance by barking and attacking people, damaging property, and creating fear among the people and especially children.’