The Supreme Court on Tuesday, May 19, dismissed all applications seeking modification or recall of its November 2025 order concerning the relocation and sterilisation of stray dogs. The court also rejected challenges to the 2025 Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) framed by the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI). A three-judge bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and NV Anjaria upheld its earlier directions while stressing the growing threat posed by stray dog attacks across the country. According to an earlier report on the hearing, the court also authorised authorities to take legally permissible measures, “including euthanasia in case of rabid and dangerous dogs”, in order to address threats to human life.
Supreme Court Flags Rising Dog Bite Incidents Across India
While delivering the order, the Bench said that incidents involving stray dog attacks had reached “deeply disturbing proportions”.
“The problem has assumed deeply disturbing proportions,” the Bench noted that dog bite cases were being reported with “alarming frequency and severity”.
The court said states and UTs had failed to make sustained efforts to build adequate infrastructure to manage the increasing stray dog population.
“The court can’t remain oblivious to harsh ground realities where kids, travellers, elderly have fallen victim to dog bite incidents,” the Bench observed, adding that the right to life with dignity also includes the right to live freely without the threat of harm from dogs.
Dog Bites And Rabies ‘Epidemic’ In India
Data from the Ministry of Health shows a sharp increase in dog bite incidents over the three years.
India recorded 2,189,909 dog bite cases in 2022. The number rose to 3,052,521 in 2023 and further increased to 3,715,713 cases in 2024.
The country also reported 21 rabies-induced human deaths in 2022, 50 deaths in 2023 and 54 deaths in 2024.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), India accounts for 36 percent of global rabies deaths.
In 2019, the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying conducted a Livestock Census. The survey estimated that India had 15 million stray dogs. Delhi alone had 55,462 stray dogs, according to the census. However, independent experts and researchers doubt these numbers.
Concerns Of Stray Dog Bites Across Public Places
The Bench noted that the issue was no longer confined to residential colonies and had spread to airports and other institutional public spaces.
Referring to reports submitted before the court, the judges said, “the very occurrence of repeated dog bite incidents in the country’s busiest airports (IGI) demonstrates grave inadequacy.”
The court also referred to incidents involving international travellers, including a German tourist who was allegedly bitten in Surat, Gujarat. According to the Bench, such incidents negatively impact public confidence in “urban governance and civil administration”.
What The November 2025 Order Had Directed On Stray Dogs
In its November 2025 order, the Supreme Court had modified an earlier direction and instructed all states and Union Territories to remove stray dogs from institutional premises.
The court had further ruled that stray dogs picked up from such areas could not be released back into the same locations after sterilisation, stating that allowing their return would “frustrate the very object” of ensuring safe public spaces.
As an interim measure issued on November 7, 2025, the court had also directed states and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to remove stray animals from highways, hospitals, schools and educational institutions nationwide.
The Bench additionally ordered government and private educational and health institutions to install fencing within eight weeks to prevent stray dog attacks.
Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
