Dog terror: Eight-year-old girl mauled to death in Bijbehara

Srinagar, Mar 21:  A minor girl was mauled to death by stray dogs in the Waghama area of Bijbehara in South Kashmir’s Anantnag district.

An official said that Arshima, 8, daughter of Gh Nabi Wani resident of Waghama was attacked by stray dogs in her native village.

He said that the girl was grievously injured in the incident. She was rushed to the hospital where she was declared dead.

This is not the first time that kids have fallen prey to stray dogs in Kashmir.

In February 2022, massive protests rocked Pattan after a 10-year-old boy was mauled to death by stray dogs at Singhpora.  Locals said a pack of dogs pounced on Azad Manzoor Ganie of Gund Ibrahim and dragged him away. He was badly bitten before people rushed in to save him. He died en route to the sub-district hospital, Pattan.

Likewise, in May last year, a seven-year-old girl was mauled by a pack of dogs in Kulgam leaving her badly injured.

Figures released by the Anti-rabies Clinic revealed that over 55000 persons have been bitten by dogs since 2013.  Figures reveal that 6041 dog bite cases were reported to SMHS hospital in 2013-14, 7324 in 2015-16, 6548 in 2016-17, 6802 in 2017-18, 6399 in 2018-19, 6984 in 2019-20, and 4798 in 2020-21.

Conservative estimates put the dog population between 60,000 to 70,000 in Srinagar city. Unnerved by growing dog bites, Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) has launched a massive drive to sterilize canines in the summer capital city.

Experts have been calling for proper disposal of kitchen and other wastes. Around one lakh poultry birds are slaughtered every day which generates 40000 kilos of waste that caters to the food needs of the stray dogs.

“We throw our kitchen waste on roads, alleys, and lanes. Dogs feed on this waste. At home too, we need to be careful while dealing with the pets like cats,” said an expert.