Vaxxed, loved: Edu institutes stand by campus strays

Guwahati: Amid recent directives from the Supreme Court to shift stray dogs from the premises of public spaces and educational institutions to designated shelters, the educational institutions in Assam have appealed for reconsideration of the move.Both schools and university-led welfare clubs said dogs on their campuses are already vaccinated and sterilised under the Animal Birth Control (ABC) rules (2023), and removing them will not only compromise the campus’s security but also cause distress to the animals.The animal welfare club of Tezpur University emphasised that in accordance with the given rules, the club has sterilised, vaccinated and fed the dogs residing on the university’s campus, co-existing with the students and teachers for years.

The club also believes that apart from contributing to the warmth and safety within the institute premises, the dogs also discourage the entry of unvaccinated or aggressive canine from outside areas.“The club firmly believes that maintaining a stable, monitored, and vaccinated population of community dogs in situ, rather than displacing them, is the most humane, lawful and effective approach,” the club said.

Echoing the same sentiments, the Scholars Institute of Technology and Management (SITM), in Guwahati has also emphasised that the campus dogs have been vaccinated and sterilised and have also affirmed its commitment to lawful, evidence-based and compassionate animal practices.Meanwhile, a few of the schools also stand in solidarity against this decision. Schools like Siksha Niketan and Nakatha LP school have assured that they would vaccinate and continue caring for the campus dogs. “We will adhere to the ABC rules, 2023 by facilitating timely vaccination and sterilisation with the help of a local animal welfare organisation,” said Tilottama Phookan, the school’s teacher