BJP leader Vijay Goel, workers holds protest against stray dog menace in Delhi

The demonstration comes days after two brothers were mauled to death by street dogs in Delhi

BJP leader Vijay Goel and members of several resident welfare associations staged a protest at the Jantar Mantar here on Wednesday against the "menace" of stray dogs in the city and asked animal lovers to adopt them.

The demonstration comes days after two brothers, Anand (7) and Aditya (5), were mauled to death by canines in Vasant Kunj here. The minors were found dead over the span of two days.

Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi on Tuesday held an emergency meeting and instructed officials to prepare an action plan within a week to control the menace of stray dogs.

Goel, who is also a former Union minister, alleged that the problem has aggravated as the Delhi government did not implement recommendations of a committee on stray dogs.

"The menace of stray dogs is growing. People cannot go for a stroll in parks... dogs are biting people in the streets. Even foreign tourists are afraid to visit Delhi," he claimed.

In the last six months 58,000 cases of dog bites were reported at the Ram Manohar Lohia and Safdarjung hospitals, Goel said.

"If we see the statistics of all the hospitals, then lakhs of cases will be found. According to an estimate, there are 10-12 incidents of dog bite every hour," he said.

The Delhi government and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) should take immediate action to check the menace, the BJP leader said.

In 2019, the Kejriwal government formed a committee to tackle the issue of stray dogs but its recommendations have not been implemented to date, he claimed.

Goel suggested opening up more sterilisation centres for stray dogs, gates in parks to check their entry, adoption of stray dogs by animal lovers, and declaring rabies as a notifiable disease to control the menace.