Supreme Court: In furtherance of the directions passed by the Court in City Hounded by Strays, Kids Pay Price, In re, (2025) 9 SCC 1, the 3-Judge Bench of Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta* and N.V. Anjaria, JJ., perused the compliance affidavits filed by the States and Union Territories pursuant to this Court’s earlier directions; and deemed it fit to modify, the directions issued by the High Court of Judicature for Rajasthan at Jodhpur in Suo Moto v. Union of India, 2025 SCC OnLine Raj 3831 and issued further directions in respect of institutional areas, including educational establishments, hospitals, sports complexes, and other public spaces such as railway stations and bus depots, where incidents of dog-bite attacks continue to be reported with alarming frequency, raising a cause of grave concern and requiring emergent remedial measures.
Modification Application and Implementation of the Directions issued by High Court of for Rajasthan in Suo Moto v. Union of India, 2025 SCC OnLine Raj 3831:
Taking note of the grave and continuing public concern that accidents caused by cattle and other stray animals on public roads and highways have become alarmingly frequent across the country and observing that the uncontrolled presence of cattle and stray animals on National Highways, National Expressways, and State Highways, constitutes a serious and avoidable threat, particularly during night-time or in high-speed zones, the Court issued the following directions:
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The Court reaffirmed the directions of the Rajasthan High Court, to the extent that the municipal authorities, road and transport department/Public Works Department of all the States and Union Territories and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) shall ensure the removal of all cattle and other stray animals from the State Highways, National Highways, and National Expressways falling within their respective jurisdictions.
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The concerned authorities, i.e., the municipal authorities, the road and transport department/Public Works Department of all the States and Union Territories and the National Highways Authority of India shall undertake a joint, coordinated drive to identify stretches of highways and expressways where stray cattle or animals are frequently found, and shall take immediate steps for their removal and relocation to designated shelters. The cattle and other stray animals so picked up shall be kept in appropriate shelters or Gaushalas/cattle pounds, as the case may be, and provided with all necessary food, water, and veterinary care, in accordance with the provisions of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 and the Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules, 2023.
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Each authority shall constitute dedicated highway patrol teams and/or assign existing road-safety units for continuous surveillance and immediate response to reports of stray cattle or other animals obstructing the roadways. Such patrols shall function on a 24×7 basis and coordinate with local police stations, veterinary officers, and municipal authorities/Panchayati Raj institutions.
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All National Highways, State Highways, and National Expressways shall have prominently displayed helpline numbers at regular intervals, enabling commuters to promptly report the presence of stray animals or accidents caused thereby. These helplines shall be linked to the control rooms of the local police, National Highways Authority of India, and district administration for real-time redressal and monitoring.
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The Chief Secretaries of all States and Union Territories, together with the Chairperson, National Highways Authority of India, shall ensure strict enforcement of these directions through appropriate administrative orders and field-level monitoring. They shall hold the concerned officers personally accountable for lapses or recurring incidents in their respective jurisdictions.
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The aforesaid directions shall be implemented uniformly across India, and the Chief Secretaries of all States and Union Territories; Chairperson, National Highways Authority of India; and Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Union of India shall file status-cum-compliance affidavits within a period of eight weeks indicating:
i. the mechanism established for removal and sheltering of stray animals from highways;
ii. the constitution and functioning of patrol teams;
Iii. the operational status of helpline facilities and installation of sign boards displaying helpline numbers.
Directions regarding Institutional Areas, i.e., educational institutions, hospitals, sports complexes, bus stands/depots and railway stations:
The Court expressed concerns over disturbing rise in dog-bite incidents within the premises of educational institutions, hospitals, sports complexes, bus stands/depots (including Inter-State Bus Terminals) and railway stations, generically speaking, institutional areas. “Instances of children being attacked in school campuses, patients and attendants being bitten within hospital compounds, athletes as well as officials being attacked by stray dogs inside sports stadiums and passengers/travellers being attacked by stray dogs at bus stands/depots and railway stations, have come to the notice of this Court”. Enumerating several such incidents, the Court pointed out that the menace of dog bites, particularly in public and private institutions that serve as spaces of learning, healing and recreation, thus constitutes not merely a public-health challenge but a matter of human safety concern.
“The State and its instrumentalities bear an affirmative obligation to ensure that no citizen, least of all children, elderly people and patients, are exposed to preventable injury or disease within public premises”.
Therefore, the Court deemed it fit to issue the following directions in the interest of public safety, health, and management of stray dogs and directed the authorities concerned to comply with the same:
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The State Governments and Union Territories shall through their respective local/ municipal authorities, within a period of two weeks, identify all Government and private educational institutions, hospitals (including district hospitals, primary health centres, and medical colleges), public sports complexes or stadia, bus stands/depots (including Inter-State Bus Terminals) and railway stations situated within their territorial limits.
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The administrative heads of the aforesaid institutions shall through their respective local/ municipal authorities, under the overall supervision of the District Magistrate concerned, ensure that the premises are secured by adequate fencing, boundary walls, gates and such other structural or administrative measures as may be necessary to prevent the ingress of stray dogs. The said exercise shall be completed as soon as possible and preferably within a period of 8 weeks from today.
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The management of every educational institution, hospital, sports complex, bus stand/depot (including Inter-State Bus Terminal) and railway station identified under Direction (A) shall designate a Nodal Officer responsible for the upkeep and cleanliness of the premises and for ensuring that stray dogs do not enter or inhabit the campus. The details of the said officer shall be displayed prominently at the entrance and notified to the jurisdictional municipal body/authority.
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The local municipal authorities and panchayats shall carry out regular inspections, at least once in every three months, of all such premises to ensure that no stray dog habitats exist within or in the immediate vicinity of these institutions. Any lapse in this regard shall be viewed seriously, and responsibility shall be fixed upon the concerned municipal officials/administrative authorities.
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It shall be the responsibility of the jurisdictional municipal body/authority to forthwith remove every stray dog found within the premises of an educational institution, hospital (public or private), sports complex, bus stand/depot (including Inter-State Bus Terminal) or railway station and to shift such animal/s to a designated shelter, after due sterilisation and vaccination, in accordance with the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023. The stray dogs so picked up shall not be released back to the same location from which they were picked up. “We have consciously directed the non-release of such stray dogs to the same location from which they were picked up, as permitting the same would frustrate the very effect of the directions issued to liberate such institutional areas from the presence of stray dogs”.
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All Government and private hospitals shall maintain a mandatory stock of anti-rabies vaccines and immunoglobulin at all times.
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Every school and educational institution shall be directed by the Ministry of Education, Government of India, to conduct awareness sessions for students and staff on preventive behaviour around animals, first-aid in case of bites, and immediate reporting protocols.
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The management of stadiums and sports complexes shall ensure the deployment of security or ground-keeping personnel specifically tasked with around the clock vigil against the entry or habitation of stray dogs.
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The railway authorities having jurisdiction over the railway stations as well as the State transport corporations and municipal authorities having jurisdiction over bus stands, depots and Inter-State Bus Terminals, shall ensure that such public-transport premises/facilities are effectively secured and maintained so as to prevent the habitation or movement of stray dogs within their premises. Proper waste-management systems shall be implemented to eliminate food sources that attract animals, and regular inspections shall be conducted to detect and address the presence of stray dogs.
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Animal Welfare Board of India shall, within four weeks, issue detailed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for prevention of dog bites and management of stray dogs in institutional premises (public or private) including but not limited to Government and private educational institutions, hospitals (including district hospitals, primary health centres, and medical colleges), and sports complexes or stadia, to be uniformly adopted across all States and Union Territories.
The Court listed the matter on 13-1-2026 for further directions and for perusal of the compliance affidavits to be filed by the Animal Welfare Board of India, all the States and Union Territories and the Union of India.
[In Re: “City Hounded by Strays, Kids Pay Price”, Suo Moto Writ Petition(Civil) No(S). 5 of 2025, order dated 7-11-2025]
*Order by Justice Sandeep Mehta