Madhya Pradesh: Stray dog attacks 7-year-old boy in Dhar’s Manawar, civic body swings into action

On 16th December, a 7-year-old boy was attacked by a stray dog in Ward 10 of Manawar town in Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh. The child was standing outside his house when the dog suddenly lunged at him. The dog bit both hands of the child during the attack. The child has been identified as Veer Prajapat.

Veer sustained deep bite wounds on his fingers. He was immediately rushed to the civil hospital in Manawar, where doctors treated his injuries and administered an anti rabies vaccine dose. According to media reports, his condition is stable.

Two children attacked in a single day

Following the attack, Congress leader Mukesh Shivde raised concerns about the safety of people in the area as, according to him, the situation has turned alarming. Speaking to the media, he said that two children were attacked in different localities on the same day. He stated that packs of stray dogs roaming residential areas have turned into a serious concern for residents, especially during morning hours when children leave for school.

According to Shivde, groups of 15 to 20 dogs are frequently seen on main roads and inside colonies, creating fear among parents and commuters.

Civic body response and dog catching drive

Following the incident and public pressure, the Manawar municipal council launched a dog catching drive across five wards. A team of around 10 municipal employees was deployed, and over 10 stray dogs were reportedly caught during the operation.

Municipal sanitation in charge Pradeep Srivastava said that the caught dogs were released outside the town limits. He added that similar drives had been carried out earlier as well, but the stray dog problem persists in several wards.

However, releasing dogs in faraway areas does not present a sustainable solution to the problem as the dogs will start biting people where they are released and may have territorial scuffles with the dogs already present in the new region. Ideally, dogs should be shifted to a shelter where they spend the rest of their lives.

It is evident that cities like Manawar do not have enough facilities to keep the dogs. It is high time that the state government provides funding and resources to establish facilities at the earliest. Furthermore, self-styled dog lovers should come forward and construct dog shelters, and help municipal authorities in taking care of the dogs at the shelter in kind and funds.

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