Thane society struggles with stray dog attacks, residents call for solutions

The residents of Saket Complex in Thane have been forced to carry lathis within the complex for selfdefence due to recent incidents of stray dog attacks wherein 1012 residents have reportedly been bitten including a security guard Concerned residents have stopped sending their children and senior citizens outside unaccompanied due to these aggressive dogs However despite complaints to various authorities including Thanersquos Rabodi police station the municipal corporation PETA and Maneka Gandhi they are yet to receive assistanceSaket Complex situated in Thane West comprises 28 buildings with 672 flats and approximately 4000 residents The society members have gathered several clips from CCTV footage showing the stray dogs attacking residents Some of the victims recount their ordealAryan Bane a residentldquoOn July 1 as I was heading to a shop outside the complex I was attacked by three to four dogs one of which bit me on the stomach I recently had surgery The dog bit me on the stitches leading to an infection My father Uday filed a written complaint with the Rabodi police but no action was taken I now live in fear of leaving my houserdquoGopal Iyer 66Iyer also faced a similar situation when three to four dogs attacked him on September 17 as he went to buy milk Speaking to midday he said ldquoI was attacked from behind and one of the dogs bit my leg I have taken three injections with one more pending as part of the treatment A pav seller saved me but I am now terrified to step out of my homerdquoShivprasad Pal workerA worker at Saket Complex experienced a dog attack on September 30 while on duty He stated ldquoI had to take two injections for the injury and it still hurtsrdquoJaleel Ahmed Hashmi guardHashmi said ldquoTwo months ago a dog bit my leg while I was on duty at the complex gaterdquoChanchal ChatterjeeChatterjee said he rescued a child from a dog but in the process twisted his knee As a result he had to undergo surgery However he struggles to walk normally due to the incidentMedha Wagle bankerWagle was chased by a pack of dogs while going to the office In the process she sustained injuries to her leg and had to take leave for 1520 days She is set to retire next monthSociety chairman speaksGopal Chary chairman of the society said many residents including his neighbours friends and security guards have recently been bitten by dogs ldquoWe do not oppose the dogs or their feeders but we need a solution to prevent these dog attacks Society members and children are now afraid to leave their homes While there are laws against relocating dogs we must find a solution for dealing with aggressive dogsWe have informed the municipal corporation but we have not received any legal assistance We have provided shelters for the dogs and food for feeders and we have held numerous meetings on this issue but we are yet to find a concrete solutionrdquo he said Vidya Menon a society member emphasised the importance of having animal birth control in the case of the stray dogs ldquoWe have stopped sending our children downstairs alone and lost our freedom because of the stray dogsrdquo she saidWhat feeders sayShraddha Parab one of the feeders said there are five feeders in the society ldquoSince 2010 we have been feeding dogs inside the complex We decided to sterilize the dogs to control their population The dogs that are attacking residents are from outside We have put identification collars on the dogs we feed but these are different dogs We have informed the society not to relocate the stray dogs we feed daily We also contacted Maneka Gandhi and she sent an email to the society advising against relocating the dogsrdquoTMCspeakThane Municipal Corporation TMC spokesperson Ravindra Manjrekar said ldquoAs per Supreme Court guidelines we cannot relocate the dogs But we can help the society members We will inform our dog squad team and help by sterilising the dogsrdquo Mitesh Jain Hon Animal Welfare Representative of the Animal Welfare Board of India told midday ldquoMunicipal corporations should also administer vaccinations to dogs Vaccinating dogs can help prevent aggression and reduce the incidence of attacks on people While municipal corporations currently perform sterilization procedures vaccination is equally importantrdquo