Stray dog menace: Passan Kadim village residents give shelter to scared labourers

Aparna Banerji

Jalandhar, February 12

Days after a woman died after being attacked by a pack of 10 to 15 dogs at the Passan Kadim village in Kapurthala, eight canine have been lifted by the Kapurthala administration and villagers from the village and its vicinity. However, the scare of stray dogs has villagers on the edge. Twenty migrant labourers are putting up at homes and farms of farmers in the village. Labourers are scared of an attack by dogs at their isolated jhuggies in the night.

These labourers include deceased Ram Pari’s husband Kewal Thakur and his children and another dog bite victim Pinki Devi from Chuhrpur village.

Residents said a veterinary team was designated to shift dogs to shelter from the village. Groups of villagers themselves armed with lathis are also catching and shifting stray dogs.

Nishan Singh, former sarpanch of Passan Kadim village, said, “The villager in whose fields Ram Pari was attacked by dogs has made a team of youths to catch stray canine. The team surrounds dogs and with the help of lathis forces them into cages sent by the administration. No dog catcher teams have been sent to the village.”

He said, “Dogs are kept at the local veterinary hospital in the night and given food there. So far, eight dogs have been caught on Saturday and Sunday.”

He said, “Fifteen labourers spend night at my haveli as they fear an attack by dogs. The dogs were taken to animal shelter this morning. Our only request to the administration is to provide cages until we catch enough dogs and shift them to shelter.”

Baljinder Singh from Chuhrpur village also provides shelter at night to labourer families, including victim Pinki Devi, at his house. Rajinder Pal Singh, Deputy Director, Animal Husbandry, Kapurthala, said, “Dogs are being shifted to a shelter. For the long haul, restart of the sterilisation programme will address the stray canine issue.”

Amit Kumar Panchal, Deputy Commissioner, Kapurthala, said, “The problem is in our notice. A meeting of villagers with the ADC, Development, who heads a committee on the issue, was held today. Several dogs have already been shifted to the designated shelter and more will be picked up soon. I have yet to get a formal report of the committee, but we are taking all necessary measures. Instructions will be given to the authorities concerned to resume the animal birth control programme in the district.”