Delhi: The Supreme Court hearing on the stray dog matter in August highlighted the need for robust data on dog-bite cases and the population of street dogs, as the Delhi government’s counsel cited several anecdotal incidents. A new study of 1,063 respondents from 10 cities has sought to fill this data gap.
Researchers Meghna Bal and Aaqib Qayoom of the Esya Centre, a Delhi-based policy think tank, have released a report on free-ranging dogs in India. The study, an empirical analysis of human–animal interactions, notes a 90 percent drop in reported human deaths from rabies — from 534 in 2004 to 54 in 2024. Between 2022 and 2025, the study said 126 rabies-related deaths were recorded nationwide.
“Most free-ranging dogs are not aggressive. When respondents were asked to describe the general temperament of free-ranging dogs in their neighbourhoods, 73.5 percent characterized them as friendly, and 15 percent as timid,” the report said, adding “only 10.8 percent of respondents described the dogs in their locality as aggressive.”
The report noted that 74 percent of dog feeders consider feeding dogs a key part of their religious practice.
“This is unsurprising given that dogs play important roles in epics like the Mahabharata, and enjoy close connections with several Indian gods,” it said.
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Safe community
Dogs and humans have a give-and-take relationship, according to the report, and that human behaviour must also be understood to prevent conflict.
“When people consistently treat free-ranging dogs kindly— by feeding them or interacting with them without hostility—the dogs are more approachable and less likely to perceive humans as a threat,” it said.
In line with this, 91.4 percent of respondents reported that neighbourhood dogs helped to keep their communities safer and deterred criminal activity.
“A further 52.21 percent felt that their presence helps keep women and children safe. Moreover, 96 percent of respondents stated that they feel “very safe” in their area because of community dogs,” the report read.
Nearly 52 percent of respondents also reported that community dogs help keep rats and monkeys at bay.
“The challenges that do exist—dog bites, localized conflict, and uneven population distribution—are real, but they stem not from the mere presence of community dogs, but from gaps in municipal planning, waste management systems, and effective implementation of the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules,” it says.
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A new approach
The research urges policymakers to look beyond removing stray dogs as the main response, and instead focus on better reporting of dog-bite cases, community involvement, and proper sterilisation and vaccination.
It calls for revising the Animal Bite Reporting Form and taking stricter action against those who harass “individuals that responsibly feed free-ranging dogs.”
“Adding a field to record whether the biting dog was a pet or a free-ranging dog would significantly strengthen the evidence base on which public health and urban animal management decisions are made,” said the report.
The report suggests collaboration between municipal departments and the community feeders by making them ‘lokyutas’ as they implement ABC rules that govern the sterilisation and vaccination of stray dogs.
“This will also help ensure that spayed dogs are returned to the locality where they were picked from,” the report said.
(Edited by Asavari Singh)