Source: Times of India
SATARA: A week after a five year-old boy was mauled to death by a pack of dogs, over 200 strays have been poisoned to death in Satara city in what’s being seen as an act of revenge. The boy was an orphan and lived with his grandmother.
The carcasses of the animals are reportedly either being thrown at dumping grounds or buried in pits to ensure that there are no traces of the poisoning . When TOI visited the Songaon Khadda dumping ground , there were at least 30 dogs rotting. “Over the last four days , we have seen several killed dogs being dumped here and buried under piles of garbage. We don’t know who is behind this,” a civic worker said.
The Satara Municipal Council has denied any role in the mass killing of dogs over the last week after a five-yearold boy was mauled to death last Friday. Council CEO Abhijeet Bapat said , “The day we got to know about the death of the boy Ramakant Dalvi , we issued a public notice stating that it is illegal to kill or torture stray dogs . We do not know who has killed them .” But sources said that certain key ground staff attached to the councilhadbeen given instructions on mixing poison in food items fed to strays and the ways to quietly dispose of the bodies.
Bapat said they had shut down Chinese food stalls that sell non-vegetarian items and throw wasted food on roads , inviting hungry strays . “We have also decided to restart sterilization to control the dog population. The animal birth control ( ABC) programme was halted in 2008 after some citizens and activists raised an objection . Since then , the dog population has shot up ,” he said . Avinash Kadam , NCP corporator from Mangalwartale in Satara , admitted that dead dogs had been found “But we don’t know how many were pickedup andtaken by our civicc leaners .In fact ,ours was the first civic council in India to starttheABC method ,” hes aid .
Recalling the attack on the child near Devi Colony in Godoli , 51-year-old tea stall owner Shivaji Moresaid , “I first heard a monkey crying as a pack of dogs were biting and tearing down something on the ground . As I went closer , I saw Ramakant ,with his skin and body parts torn out by the dogs .”
Asked if he felt that killing dogs was justified, More said , “If an animal becomes rabid ,it is better to put it down . I don’t know about the killings in other parts , but in this area , those dogs had become mad indeed.” However , president of NGO Animal Welfare Trust , Dhiren Rajpurohit , slammed the civic councilfor failing to protect the animals . “Our trust had conducted over 1,000 sterilizations till 2008, but the council terminated our contract .”
Mumbai-based animal welfare officer Ganesh Nayak of Animals Matter To Me said , “Legal action should be taken against those responsible for the killings .” Meanwhile , veterinarian Manilal Valliyate of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said a sister concern called Rahat was ready to help the civic body restart the sterilization process .