Delhi High Court asks civic bodies to coordinate with Lucknow on dog sterilisation training

The Delhi High Court on Monday directed the city’s municipal bodies to coordinate with the Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) and organise training camps for veterinarians, para-veterinarians and dog catchers at the earliest to accelerate the sterilisation of stray dogs in the Capital.

  A Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Aditi Choudhary also directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to prepare a roadmap for the sterilisation programme, incorporating suggestions made by amicus curiae Gauri Maulekhi, and place it before the court for approval.

  The court noted that Ms. Maulekhi had informed it that, following her intervention, the LMC had agreed to send personnel to Delhi to conduct a 15-day training programme based on the module prescribed by the Animal Welfare Board of India.

  The programme will cover veterinarians, para-veterinarians and dog catchers, while the MCD and the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) have been asked to indicate the locations and schedule of the camps.

  “The NDMC and MCD are directed to coordinate with the LMC and hold camps for this training as early as possible,” the court said.

  The Bench was also informed that the MCD and the NDMC had successfully conducted sterilisation camps in two wards or circles. It directed the civic bodies to extend the exercise to two more wards and gave them four weeks to file affidavits confirming that all stray dogs in the respective wards had been sterilised.

  The directions came as the High Court sought to expedite the sterilisation process in Delhi while ensuring compliance with the Supreme Court’s directions on stray dogs in public spaces.

  Ms. Maulekhi also placed before the court a roadmap and report for implementing a pilot sterilisation camp. The Bench gave the MCD four weeks to submit its comments and suggestions on the proposal.

The proceedings are part of a suo motu case initiated by the High Court following directions issued by the Supreme Court on May 19. 

During the proceedings, the Bench had stressed the need to strike a balance between the concerns of “dog lovers” and “dog haters”, observing that dog-bite incidents occur daily and affect ordinary residents.

In its May 19 order, the Supreme Court had directed States and Union Territories to strengthen infrastructure to deal with stray dogs and other animals. It also asked all High Courts to register suo motu proceedings to monitor compliance with its earlier directions of August 22, 2025, and November 7, 2025.