Public Interest
The Supreme Court's stray-dog orders: capture, sterilise, release
The order and its modification
In the suo motu proceedings In Re: 'City Hounded By Strays, Kids Pay Price', a two-judge Bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan, on 11.08.2025, directed authorities in Delhi-NCR to capture, sterilise, deworm and immunise stray dogs and house them in shelters, and not to release them back onto the streets.
On 22.08.2025 a three-judge Bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N.V. Anjaria modified that order (2025 LiveLaw (SC) 824), holding the blanket bar on release too harsh. Dogs that are picked up are to be released back to the same area after sterilisation, deworming and immunisation, except those infected or suspected to be infected with rabies, or showing aggressive behaviour. Public feeding on the streets is not permitted, and designated feeding spaces are to be created.
Why it matters
The Court extended the matter beyond Delhi-NCR to the whole country, drawing in the States and Union Territories for compliance with the Animal Birth Control Rules. The orders try to balance public safety, in particular the risk of rabies and dog-bite injuries to children, against the welfare of the animals, and they set the framework that municipal bodies must now work within.
This note is general information on the law as at the date shown, not legal advice on any specific matter. The law changes; for advice on your facts, please speak to the firm.
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