Catch, neuter, release: SC revises 'too harsh' Aug 11 order on dogs

Holding that the earlier prohibition on releasing stray dogs was “too harsh”, the Supreme Court on Friday modified its August 11 directions on the mass capture of stray dogs, clarifying that canines picked up by municipal authorities in Delhi and four adjoining districts, Noida, Ghaziabad, Gurugram and Faridabad, will be released in the same locality after sterilisation and immunisation, except for those suffering from rabies or displaying aggressive behaviour.

- Utkarsh Anand

The top court's clarification that community dogs must be picked up, sterilised and vaccinated, and then released—save for rabid or demonstrably aggressive animals -- essentially reiterates the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules, 2023. Those rules, framed unde