Canine rampage in Jalahalli exposes BBMP 'negligence'

Bengaluru, NT Bureau: In the wake of the shocking incident where a 76 year-oldwoman was mauled to death by 10-12 dogs at the Indian Air Force (IAF) premises in Jalahalli, activists, experts and citizens have called for a proactive approach by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to curb stray dog attacks.

On Wednesday, Raj Dulari Sinha’s morning walk at a ground in the 7th Residential Camp at Jalahalli turned horrendous when a pack of stray dogs attacked her, leaving her with grievous injuries. She was reportedly brought dead to the hospital.

Dulari, who hails from Bihar, is the mother-in-law of an IAF flier. Harikrishnan, who claims to be a witness to the incident, recounted the scene to News Trail. Waking up to a loud noise, he assumed it was children fighting in the ground.

“I peeped through the window and noticed a pack of dogs pulling something, and I realised it was a lady, after I put on my glasses,” he added.

He claims that the wall dividing his residence and the IAF campus didn’t help either. “However, a man arrived after I desperately cried for help. She(the victim) was speaking to that man, uttering some name,” he claimed. He felt the large number of dogs was something unusual.

“I usually see around four dogs. But a few people have been dumping garbage near the compound where the incident happened. The dogs also come from the abandoned campuses in Ramachandrapura,” he said.

When asked if he recalled any vaccination or sterilisation of dogs happening in the area, Harikrishnan said he could not recount any such instance.

“Only waste collection from the IAF premises by the BBMP takes place here,” he claimed. Activists echoed similar concerns on the civic body’s ne gligence in sterilising dogs. Sujatha Prasanna, an animal activist, however felt that with no one feeding the dogs, they might have turned aggressive.

“The BBMP should come up with a solution to keep the street dogs properly fed which in turn, will help in reducing their ferociousness and make them calmer. The Animal Birth Control(ABC) programme along with vaccination and sterilisation should be implemented to control their numbers,” she added.

15 dogs caught and sterilised: Animal Husbandry official

Ravi Kumar S, Joint Director of the Animal Husbandry department at BBMP, told News Trail that the dogs allegedly involved in the attack were caught and sterilised.

“The IAF campus is large, and therefore we couldn’t observe and sterilise at first,” he explained.

When asked about any provocation or environmental factor behind the attack, he said only a post-mortem report could provide clues on the cause. The officials visited the family of the deceased, and Rs. 5 lakh was paid as compensation.