The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) plans to establish a new dog pound as the two existing ones are grossly inadequate, deputy mayor Atin Ghosh said on Wednesday.
The existing dog pounds at Dhapa and Entally have space for 280 dogs. If a recent Supreme Court order has to be adhered to, the civic body will need a much bigger space, Ghosh said.
On November 7, the Supreme Court directed authorities across the country to remove stray dogs from public places, including schools, colleges, hospitals, bus stops and railway stations and relocate them to canine shelters.
After being rounded up and sterilised, the stray dogs must not be allowed back in their former neighbourhoods, the court said in what is being seen as a setback for stray dog lovers.
The orders are part of measures to combat increasing instances of stray dog bites, rabies-related deaths and road accidents.
Ghosh, who also heads the KMC's health department, said it's not a mere case of not relocating stray dogs; the operation will require a "humane approach".
"We are looking at a space that can accommodate about 5,000 dogs. The Supreme Court has said that stray dogs should be removed from institutions and public spaces. There are space and funding constraints. It is not easy to implement such an order," Ghosh said.
"We do not want to confine dogs in cages. These are stray dogs, and they need large areas to roam. We want to create a facility where people from the places where the dogs were picked can visit them. We will also need donations from NGOs and others to set up and run such a facility," he said,
On Thursday, Ghosh will accompany several KMC officials to a possible site at Dhapa, within the East Calcutta Wetlands. Whether a dog pound can be constructed on the site will depend on obtaining the necessary legal and other clearances.
A 2007 survey suggested there were 55,000 stray dogs in the city, Ghosh said. "There is no scope to expand the dog pounds. We have space for only 240 dogs at the Dhapa pound and 40 more in Entally."
The KMC is still proceeding with its sterilisation programme, though it is far less than what is required.
There is also an acute lack of veterinary officers qualified to sterilise dogs and treat the animals. "Students passing out from the university of health sciences do not want to work with stray dogs, and are more interested in working at cattlesheds and for other animals in districts," Ghosh said.