Target: Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India
Goal: Halt the mass capture and confinement of community dogs that would push animals into overcrowded shelters, and enforce sterilize–vaccinate–release programs with accountability for any cruelty during handling.
Hundreds of animal lovers, rescuers, and activists have sounded the alarm after a directive ordered authorities to remove all stray dogs from the streets of Delhi–NCR and confine them to shelters within weeks. Protesters described how such a sweep would wrench community dogs from their territories and funnel them into already strained facilities, where space, staffing, and veterinary resources are limited. They marched with placards saying “Dogs have rights too” and “Their streets, their freedom,” warning that the plan would translate into suffering, stress, and preventable deaths for vulnerable animals.
Advocates further noted that India’s established approach is to sterilize and vaccinate street dogs and return them to their home areas. Replacing this system with mass round-ups invites overcrowding and neglect. Dogs jammed into kennels face heat stress, disease spread, and prolonged confinement with inadequate enrichment or human contact. In the chaos of hurried removals, animals are at risk of rough handling, injury, and deprivation of food and water.
Protecting public health and safety must go hand-in-hand with protecting animal welfare. Humane, science-based sterilization and vaccination programs reduce conflicts without condemning dogs to cages. Sign below to demand the ministry act now to stop mass removals, direct authorities to expand sterilize–vaccinate–release, and ensure that any cruelty or neglect during dog handling is investigated and penalized under the law.
PETITION LETTER:
Honorable Minister Singh,
We are deeply concerned by the directive to seize all community dogs across Delhi–NCR and confine them to shelters within a short window. Such a sweep will overwhelm facilities and subject countless animals to stressful, unsafe, and inhumane conditions. Recent rallies underscored the grim reality of overcrowded kennels, inadequate staffing, and the predictable suffering that follows when animals are crammed into confinement.
India already has a humane path: sterilization, vaccination, and return to the same locality. Abruptly replacing this proven approach with mass round-ups invites heat stress, illness, and severe behavioral decline among dogs who are abruptly torn from their territories. During hurried removals, animals are also at risk of rough handling and deprivation of basic needs.
We respectfully urge your office to (1) halt mass removals and reaffirm sterilize–vaccinate–release as the primary policy; (2) immediately resource and scale vaccinations and sterilizations; (3) mandate humane-handling standards and independent monitoring; and (4) direct swift investigation and penalties for any cruelty or neglect by personnel or contractors involved in dog handling and confinement. Humane public safety solutions are entirely compatible with strong animal-welfare protections—please ensure both.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo credit: grabka dot org
