A Mission Doomed to Fail?

Shadab Peerzada

The Supreme Court’s August 2025 directive to round up, sterilize, vaccinate, and shelter all stray dogs in Delhi-NCR within eight weeks sounds like a plan to make streets safer. But in a city bursting at the seams, with no shelters, limited funds, and an unknown number of strays, it’s like asking a street vendor to feed a million people with a single stove. Delhi’s stray dog crisis is real—rising bites, rabies fears, and public unease demand action. Yet, without infrastructure, manpower, or even a proper headcount of dogs, this noble order feels like a promise written on water.

The Scale of the Problem

Delhi’s stray dog population is a mystery wrapped in a guess. The last official count, way back in 2009, pegged it at 560,000. Today, estimates swing wildly between 800,000 and 1.5 million. Without an updated census, authorities are planning in the dark—like trying to fix a car without knowing how many wheels it has. In 2024, Delhi reported over 150,000 dog bite cases, with 35,000 in the first half of 2025 alone, and at least 15 rabies-related deaths, mostly among children and the elderly. These numbers scream urgency, but the city’s response is stuck in first gear.

No Shelters, No Space

The Supreme Court ordered all strays to be moved to permanent shelters, but here’s the catch: Delhi has no large-scale government shelters. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) relies on 20 Animal Birth Control (ABC) centers, run with NGOs, that can house just 1,500–4,000 dogs temporarily—less than 0.5% of the estimated stray population. These centers sterilize and vaccinate dogs before releasing them back to their original areas, as mandated by the ABC Rules, 2023. The Court’s new “no-release” policy demands massive new shelters, but building them in eight weeks is a fantasy. For perspective, housing one million dogs would need facilities the size of multiple football fields, complete with food, water, medical care, and CCTV surveillance. Delhi, already short on space for its 20 million human residents, can’t conjure this overnight.

Manpower? Good Luck

Capturing strays requires dog catchers, but Delhi has only two dog-catching vans for the entire city. That’s right—two vans for potentially a million dogs. Each van would need to catch 500,000 dogs to meet the Court’s target, a logistical nightmare. Dog catchers, often underpaid and undertrained, face dangerous conditions and public backlash. One catcher recently shared, “We dodge bites and angry residents daily, with no proper gear.” Scaling this up to capture thousands of dogs in six weeks, as the Court demands for high-risk areas, is simply impossible without a small army of trained workers—something Delhi doesn’t have and can’t train in time.

The Money Crunch

Caring for one stray dog costs about ₹40 per day for food alone, excluding medical care, sterilization, or vaccinations. For one million dogs, that’s ₹40 million daily—₹1,200 crore a year—just to keep them fed. Add costs for building shelters, hiring staff, and maintaining facilities, and the bill could hit ₹15,000 crore, as estimated by animal activist Maneka Gandhi. Delhi’s civic budget, already stretched thin fixing roads and schools, can’t absorb this without massive new funding. NGOs, who handle most sterilization work, are also cash-strapped, operating on shoestring budgets in cramped facilities. Asking them to scale up is like expecting a bicycle to tow a truck.

Public Divide and Practical Hurdles

Delhi’s residents are split. Some, especially in areas with aggressive strays, cheer the Court’s focus on safety, tired of dodging packs on evening walks or worrying about kids playing outside. Others, including animal lovers, call the order “cruel” and “unscientific,” arguing that mass relocation risks overcrowding and poor shelter conditions. Veterinarians like Dr. Kunal Dev Sharma argue for intensified sterilization and vaccination drives over relocation, citing Goa’s success with Trap-Neuter-Return programs that achieved zero rabies cases. The ABC Rules, 2023, which the Court’s order overrides, support this approach, as releasing sterilized dogs prevents new, unsterilized ones from taking over territories.

A Way Forward?

The Supreme Court’s intent—balancing public safety with humane treatment—is sound, but the plan ignores ground realities. A practical solution needs:

A Proper Census:

Count the dogs to know what we’re dealing with.  

Mass Sterilization: Ramp up ABC programs with mobile veterinary units to hit 70% sterilization, the threshold to curb population growth.  

Shelter Expansion: Build regional shelters gradually, with proper funding and veterinary care.  

Public Engagement: Promote adoption, responsible feeding, and waste management to reduce stray aggression.  

Legal Tweaks: Amend ABC Rules to allow sheltering aggressive dogs while keeping humane standards.

Delhi’s stray dog crisis isn’t unsolvable, but it demands data, infrastructure, and money—not just court orders. Until then, the city’s million strays will keep roaming, unaware of the grand plans drawn up in courtrooms. The real mission isn’t catching dogs by teatime; it’s building a system that works for both people and their four-legged neighbors.