Bengaluru: Students and young citizens under the banner of Students For Streeties Saturday urged Karnataka govt to prioritise Animal Birth Control (ABC) and Anti-Rabies Vaccination (ARV) programmes over the proposed establishment of five pounds for community dogs (shelters for dogs from institutional areas) in Bengaluru.At a press meet, the group also appealed to chief minister DK Shivakumar and leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, to reconsider the proposed pounds as permanent confinement facilities and suggested using existing infrastructure as centres for sterilisation, vaccination, veterinary treatment, rehabilitation and responsible release.The group also sought transparency on the proposed facilities, including their construction costs, budgets, tenders, staffing, maintenance and implementation timelines. It said public funds should instead be directed towards expanding and monitoring ABC and ARV programmes across the state’s 31 districts.Participants also called for consultations with students, citizens, animal welfare organisations and veterinary professionals before large-scale infrastructure projects are implemented.The group said humane, science-based dog population management could help balance public health, animal welfare and community concerns, and urged the govt to focus on long-term solutions rather than prolonged confinement of healthy dogs.Animal welfare activists, legal professionals, students and volunteers, along with a community dog, named Ramu, from St Mark’s Road, attended the meet.
