In the backdrop of pressure mounting from pet owners, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is likely to delay enforcing the pet licensing rules.
Last week — almost a year after coming out with the draft guidelines for licensing pet dogs in the city — the BBMP had announced that it would implement them.
While a majority of citizens have welcomed the move to licence pets, other rules, including putting a cap on the number of dogs apartment dwellers can own, have been criticised.
“We are thinking about the decision and are ready to take suggestions from citizens to modify the rules. The suggestions will be forwarded to the BBMP’s Animal Husbandry Department for consultation,” said Sarfaraz Khan, BBMP Joint Commissioner, Health and Solid Waste Management.
“Licensing should have been done a long time ago to ensure the dogs are accounted for. But, the civic body should not dictate terms to pet owners. Restricting the number of dogs will lead to many dogs being abandoned on streets,” said Arpita Bhattacharya Nayyar, a dog owner.
Apart from restricting the breeds and number of dogs that can be kept in apartments, the guidelines include mandatory licensing, separate breeding licence, and where not available, sterilisation of pet dogs. It says an owner must get a micro chip implanted in the dog at his own cost and renew the licence annually. Owners can also face a penalty of ₹100 if they fail to clean up after their dogs in public spaces in first instance. The penalty will double for subsequent non-compliance. Those failing to get a licence will have to pay a heavy penalty of ₹1,000. The clause, which states that dogs that are not licensed can be seized, has also generated a lot of criticism. “What is the BBMP going to do with the dogs it seizes? Where will it keep them? Government shelters cannot accommodate these pets and even if they do, their chances of survival will be very little given the condition of these shelters. Pet owners will definitely protest if BBMP goes ahead with this,” said Priya Chetty-Rajagopal, another pet owner and member of Cubbon Park Canines.
Animal welfare NGOs such as CARE and CUPA have been getting numerous calls from pet owners asking what they can do about their second dog.
Bringing the focus back on illegal pet breeders, animal activists said that civic body should ensure closure of such centres. “The BBMP should also look at these illegal centres and close them and also concentrate on sterilising street dogs before targeting pet owners,” said Ms. Rajagopal.
There is lack of understanding within the BBMP. This is the third time it is trying this. “The first two times, the guideline was rejected and returned by the Animal Welfare Board. The BBMP is now trying to intimidate pet owners to abandon dogs, going against the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act,” she added, adding that the civic body should have consulted with the public before finalising rules.
Online petition
Angry pet owners have started an online petition to be sent to Joint Commissioner Health and SWM, BBMP, Sarfaraj Khan, and Animal Husbandry Joint Director Anand. The petition has already received around 1,500 signatures.
Several groups are also exploring legal options if the decision is not reversed. “We have also created a hashtag #NotWithoutMyDog. If the BBMP goes ahead with the decision, we will leave our second pet dogs in their head office,” said Ms. Rajagopal. Videos and memes are also being created to be circulated on social media sites.
