The Supreme Court reserved its verdict in a suo motu case initiated last year to examine measures being undertaken across the country to manage the stray dog population. A Bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N.V. Anjaria reserved judgment after hearing final submissions from various States, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI).

During the hearing, the Court urged the NHAI to develop a mobile application to enable members of the public to report sightings of stray animals along national highways, including by uploading photographs. The NHAI indicated its willingness to implement such a mechanism.

The AWBI informed the Court that only 76 stray dog sterilisation centres across the country have been formally recognised by it, despite data furnished by States indicating the existence of 883 such centres. It was submitted that over 250 applications seeking recognition were still pending, and that several centres were operating without approval.

The Court sought clarification on the functioning of unrecognised centres, following which concerns were raised about discrepancies in sterilisation data and the possibility of misuse of funds allocated for the purpose. Reference was also made to instances where reported sterilisation figures exceeded estimated dog population numbers in certain States.

The Bench directed the AWBI to process all pending applications for recognition within a stipulated timeframe, either by granting approval or rejecting them. The Court thereafter reserved its judgment and granted liberty to the parties to file written submissions within a week.

Senior Advocate Manisha Karia appeared on behalf of the AWBI.