The Karnataka government has issued guidelines regarding pet dogs and street dogs, and their caregivers, who visit Bengaluru’s Cubbon Park, days after the Karnataka High Court raised objections over the unregulated entry of dogs into the park, observing that it disturbs many people who come for morning walks. The new guidelines prohibit “ferocious and larger breed dogs” from entering Cubbon Park, a popular destination for morning walks for many Bengaluru residents. Pet owners have also been advised not to feed pets inside the park.
The high court had earlier asked the BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) to devise a plan to regulate the entry of dogs and the movement of stray dogs in and outside Cubbon Park. The new guidelines from the Department of Horticulture also require pets to be put on a leash up to six feet long, as it would “assure passersby that they are safe and they are more likely to be comfortable when walking in the vicinity of a dog on a leash.”
Dog owners will also have to bring scoops to pick up the excreta of their dog and dispose of it in garbage bins. Pet owners have been advised to ensure that “their pets are not a source of nuisance to others,” and to ensure their pets are healthy and clean. Rabies vaccination will be mandatory for dogs, and pet owners will be liable for any bites and injuries caused by their pets.
Dog owners will have to show rabies vaccination records to authorities when asked, the guidelines said, and also advised sterilisation “as our country has excessive dog population.” Caregivers have been advised to avoid feeding street dogs adjacent to areas where children play or people take walks. “Feeding must not be done in a manner that contributes to littering or dirtying any feeding site,” the guidelines said, adding that caregivers are also advised to clean up feeding sites after feeding is over.
Earlier on December 9, the Karnataka High Court was hearing a case filed by Cubbon Park Walkers Association against the demolition of a single-storeyed building of the court and the construction of another multi-storeyed building in its place, when it asked why dogs are allowed into Cubbon Park. A division bench of Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi and Justice Sachin Shankar Magadum questioned how dogs are permitted in public places and said it will take suo-motu cognisance of the issue.