New Delhi, Oct 25 (PTI) Expressing concern over the menace of stray dogs and monkeys in the city, the Delhi High Court directed authorities on Friday to shift all the monkeys of the national capital to the Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary on priority.
A bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, which was hearing a plea on the issue of stray dogs and monkeys attacking differently-abled people, said stray animals cannot be allowed to take over the city.
The court also directed the Delhi chief secretary to convene a meeting on November 4, which should be attended by the heads of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Delhi Cantonment Board and forest department, to devise a mechanism to deal with the issue.
It should also be attended by the secretary of the Animal Welfare Board of Delhi, the animal husbandry department of the Delhi government, the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), petitioners’ lawyers Rahul Bajaj and Amar Jain and activist Gauri Maulekhi, the court said.
“A society comprises various groups, including those suffering from various disabilities, and they have a genuine problem. This is a very important issue. Nowhere in the world will you find that the whole city is taken over by monkeys and dogs. That should not happen. They also need to be treated with respect.
“We will treat stray animals with respect but human beings also need to be treated with respect. Therefore, some mechanism has to be evolved. Persons with disabilities (PwD) should also not be troubled by stray animals and people should be able to walk on the streets of the city,” the bench said.
“With the consent of all parties, it is directed that the monkeys be shifted from Delhi to the Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary. It should be executed by the MCD, NDMC, Cantonment Board and forest department on a priority basis,” it added.
The bench listed the matter for further hearing on November 18.
The court was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) plea moved by NGO Dhananjay Sanjogta Foundation, represented by Bajaj, who is visually-impaired. The plea said besides the attacks, there is lack of an enabling framework for the use of therapy or service animals by persons with disabilities.
Bajaj submitted that the Animal Birth Control Rules are in violation of the provisions of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act as those fail to address the issue of stray animal attacks on the differently-abled, who are incapable of defending themselves.
The white cane used by the visually-impaired resembles a stick that the animals perceive as a threat and therefore, attack, he added.
The bench said PwDs have a fundamental right to walk on the city streets and some people have this notion that specially-abled persons do not have any right.
“This notion should not be there. Leave aside this gentleman (Bajaj), even we are not able to walk on the streets. It is time for you (authorities) to realise your mistakes. Some broad action plan has to be brought in by you,” it said.
The court said PwDs have a genuine problem — they are being attacked and mauled by strays and they have no space to walk on the streets.
It said animals like to stay in their own habitat in the jungle and humans cannot be allowed to bring them to a city.
The court wondered how could there be stray dogs and monkeys in hospitals, where people go for treatment and need to stay in a sterilised atmosphere.
“You cannot have strays in hospitals. The AIIMS cannot be infested with stray dogs and monkeys. People have gone there for an operation, they need to live in a clean environment and they have to live in a sterilised area. So there cannot be animals in hospitals,” the bench said.
It further said the priority should be to get public parks, schools and hospitals cleared, especially where youngsters and PwDs go and that municipal authorities should take the initiative.
The court said it has become impossible to walk on the streets of Delhi even with a pet dog because there are so many stray animals.
“It is a genuine problem and we cannot have this situation where children are bitten by stray animals and they cannot play in parks,” it added.
“We need to balance the interests and not go overboard on either side. You will not find any city of the world where strays will run over a city and if you go to any developed city in the world, including London, you will not find stray dogs and monkeys roaming around,” the court said.
It also noted that a large number of monkey-bite incidents has been reported in Delhi.
The Tis Hazari court complex cannot be used after 4 pm as it is taken over by monkeys and these are institutions where people have to work and they are unable to perform their duties, the bench said.
It asked the authorities how the population of stray animals is increasing so rapidly.
One of the officers of a civic body submitted that most of the stray dogs have been sterilised in the NDMC areas and the process is being followed in other areas as well.
He, however, added that after sterilisation, the canines are left in the same place from where they were picked up.
“A practical solution needs to be devised now and not in the future. We cannot allow this extreme to come that stray animals will be all over the city and human beings will not have any right to live here. We cannot have so many monkey bites,” the court said. PTI SKV RC
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