The central government has directed all ministries to clear stray dogs from their campuses, a list that covers places like hospitals, schools, railway stations, and sports complexes. The order comes after a Supreme Court ruling last year and aims to make these public spaces safer, especially for children, patients, and athletes who use them every day.
Ministries have been given until June 30, 2026, to show proof that they are following the new rules.
What Ministries Must Do
The government has laid out a clear set of steps. Campuses must put up fences or boundary walls to stop stray dogs from entering. Waste must be managed better, since leftover food and garbage are often what attract dogs to these areas in the first place. Every campus must also display the contact details of a nodal officer, so that there’s always someone clearly responsible if a dog is spotted on the premises.
Hospitals have been told to keep enough anti-rabies vaccines in stock at all times. Schools are expected to run sessions teaching children about dog safety and basic first aid, in case of an unexpected encounter. Railway stations and sports venues will also see extra staff posted specifically to watch out for stray dogs entering these busy public areas.
Once all this is in place, the Health Ministry will gather updates from every ministry and prepare a combined report by August, which will then be submitted to the courts.
How This Started: The Supreme Court’s Order
This entire push traces back to a series of Supreme Court orders passed last year. The matter began after the Court took up the stray dog issue on its own, following growing concern over dog bite cases and the threat they posed to public safety, particularly to children.
In August 2025, the Court first ordered the removal of stray dogs from Delhi and the surrounding region. This early order led to strong objections from animal welfare groups, and the case was soon handed to a larger bench for a fresh look. Rather than narrowing the issue, the Court widened it, eventually applying its directions to the entire country and taking over similar cases that were pending in various High Courts.
The most significant order came in November 2025, when the Court specifically focused on what it called “institutional areas” like schools, colleges, hospitals, sports complexes, bus stands, and railway stations. The Court noted that the rising number of dog bite cases inside these spaces, which are often filled with children, patients, the elderly, and daily commuters, reflected a failure in how waste and public spaces were being managed, and said the matter needed urgent attention.
Under this order, any stray dog found within such institutional areas must be removed, sterilised, and vaccinated, following India’s existing animal birth control rules. However, unlike on regular streets, these dogs cannot be released back into the same campus once treated. Instead, they must be shifted to a designated shelter and kept away from these spaces permanently.
The Court also asked the Animal Welfare Board of India to prepare a standard set of guidelines, or SOP, for how all this should be carried out, including details on shelter capacity, staffing, and vaccination records. States and union territories were also told to file affidavits confirming they were complying with these directions.
The Jaypee Greens Case
While the Supreme Court order applies across India, one incident that drew nationwide attention and added urgency to the issue happened in Jaypee Greens, a large residential township in Greater Noida.
In February 2026, CCTV footage from inside the society went viral, showing a pack of stray dogs aggressively chasing a woman as she walked through the premises early in the morning. The video sparked outrage among residents, many of whom said they had been complaining about aggressive stray dogs in the area for years without enough action being taken.
The situation grew worse in May 2026, when a 63-year-old Delhi University professor, Sangeeta Sharma, was chased by four to five stray dogs near her home inside the same township. She lost her balance while trying to escape and fell hard on her back, suffering a serious injury. Her family said the professor had already been dealing with knee and spinal issues, making the fall even more dangerous for her.
Following this incident, residents of Jaypee Greens held protests, demanding that authorities finally enforce the safety measures ordered by the courts. They pointed out that the township, spread across 465 acres, reportedly had more than 500 stray dogs roaming freely, and said many families had been quietly dealing with similar scares for years. Local authorities later agreed to launch a sterilisation drive and prepare a clear action plan, with residents pushing for regular follow-up reviews to make sure the promises were actually kept.
