After slums and monkeys, Delhi removes stray dogs from streets as G-20 summit nears
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NEW DELHI - Hundreds of stray dogs that roam the streets of the Indian capital Delhi are being rounded up by the authorities and moved to shelters in the run-up to the Group of 20 (G-20) summit this weekend, according to animal activists and Reuters witnesses.
The authorities have already cleared many slums in the city and put up life-size cut-outs of langurs to scare monkeys
The G-20 summit, the largest-ever gathering of world leaders in the Indian capital, will be attended by US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, among others.
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) did not directly link the removal of stray dogs to the summit, stating that the strays are being picked up only on an urgent basis.
Ambulances that Reuters saw being used for the rounding-up of strays, however, displayed boards that read “On Duty G-20”.
According to government data, the national capital territory of Delhi has more than 60,000 stray dogs. These are fed and doted upon by many of Delhi’s 20 million residents, but instances of the dogs attacking people are not uncommon.
In August, the MCD issued an order for the removal of stray dogs “from the vicinity of prominent locations in view of the G-20 summit”, but withdrew the directions two days later following a backlash.
Animal activists say the civic body then started capturing stray dogs “in an inhumane manner” last week, without using methods such as “net catching or hand catching”, which are mandated by guidelines.
Nearly 1,000 dogs have been rounded up so far from areas like the airport and the G-20 venue, the activists said.
Reuters’ witnesses saw MCD teams capturing dogs using rods with a loop at one end. The animals were then dragged onto ambulances.
“What India is doing is ironic, given the theme of the G-20 – One Earth, One Family, One Future. It is hypocritical to talk of a shared future when we do not make room for our co-beings,” said Ms Ambika Shukla, a trustee of People for Animals, a non-governmental organisation (NGO).
Mr Sanjay Mohapatra, founder of the House of Stray Animals NGO, termed the MCD’s actions “needless”.
“If delegates see people feeding stray dogs, it will actually create a good impression of the country,” he said.
Stray dogs put up at an animal shelter eating in their enclosures at the facility at Bijwasan in New Delhi, India.
PHOTO: REUTERS
The MCD said in a statement that the captured dogs were being tracked and would be released in the areas that they were taken from, but did not give a timeframe.
“All the dogs are safe and comfortable with necessary medical help available to them,” it said.
Friendicoes, one of the groups working with the MCD to round up the canines, said it has picked up 234 dogs using nets and moved them to its three shelters in the city.
Reuters images showed the animals inside cages. A whiteboard hanging at the entrance of a shelter shows the numbers of the tokens assigned to the dogs, and details their gender and fur colour.
“We have stopped the work now since we have reached full capacity. The dogs will be released at the same locations from where they were picked up, after the summit,” said Friendicoes co-founder Geeta Seshamani. REUTERS
