Strays kill 90-year-old man; people start mass culling in Kerala

People of Varkala killed 30 street dogs after a group of strays mauled a 90-year-old man to death on Wednesday
He is the second victim of stray dog attack in the state this year
A 65-year-old woman died in August after 50 dogs attacked her at a beach near capital city

30 strays killed man dies in street dog attack

Outraged by the killing of a 90 year-old-man at Varkala in Kerala, people took law into their hands and culled 30 dogs in public on Thursday. Meanwhile, the state government ordered civic bodies to implement animal birth control (ABC) on a war footing and rejected Union Minister Maneka Gandhi's call to impose Kerala Anti-social Activities Prevention Act (KAAPA) against those killing canines.

Also read: Maneka wants 'goonda act' against those who kill dangerous strays

A pack of dogs attacked Raghavan, a native of Varkala on Wednesday morning, while he was sleeping on the verandah of his house. Though he was admitted to Medical College Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, he succumbed to his injuries.

This is the second death in the state following an attack by strays this year. On 20 August, a pack of 50 dogs mauled a 65-year-old woman to death at Pulluvila beach near the capital city.

Following this, state government decided to implement mass culling of violent strays by injecting poison but withdrew its decision following protest from animal rights activists.

Stray dog attacks are on the rise and, several instances are being reported from across the state on a daily basis. According to the report of the panel appointed by Supreme Courts to study about stray dog menace in the state, street dog population in Kerala is estimated at 2.5 lakhs and more than one lakh stray dog attacks were reported in 2015-16.

District wise list of stray dog attacks reported in 2015-16

Thiruvananthapuram - 5,948

Kollam - 3,670

Pathanamthitta - 2,892

Alappuzha - 2,967

Kottayam - 1,614

Ernakulam - -2,050

Thrissur - 2,044

Palakkad - 4,916