NT Reporter
Panaji
Minister for Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services Nilkanth Halarnkar on Monday said the state government will implement the Supreme Court order on setting up of shelter homes for stray dogs once the top court gives its final order.
“Once the court order on shelter homes for stray dogs comes, we will implement it. We will create the infrastructure once the order comes. The government has the required funds to create the necessary infrastructure,” Halarnkar said speaking on the sidelines of a function at
Malim jetty.
The state government has already constituted a three-member task force under the chairmanship of Deputy Director of Animal Husbandry Department Dr Nitin Naik to deal with the issue of stray dogs and their rehabilitation in shelter homes.
The task force has been tasked with the job of preparing and executing an action plan to address the issue of stray dogs and ensure their rehabilitation in shelter homes in consultation with the civic bodies concerned.
It may be noted that a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court reserved its decision last Thursday on whether to stay an earlier order directing authorities to free Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) of stray dogs.
The top court’s suo motu order on August 11, aimed at protecting the people of Delhi and NCR from the menace of stray dogs, led to widespread outrage. The bench comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan directed the Delhi government, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the authorities of NCR to pick up stray dogs and relocate them to shelters and pounds within eight weeks.
Immediately after, several Interlocutory Applications (IAs) were filed before the top court seeking a recall of the order. The IAs raised concerns over the lack of infrastructure to implement the order and its health consequences.
As a result, the case was relisted on August 14 before a larger bench of three judges comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N V Anjaria. After hearing the IAs, the bench reserved its verdict on the stay the same day.
