Karnataka High Court notice to Centre, State on plea opposing BBMP’s stray dog microchipping project

Petitioners say microchipping is mandatory only for breeders when pups are sold by them under the provisions of PCA and when the pups are sold by pet shops

The High Court of Karnataka on Tuesday (November 19) ordered issue of notice to the Centre, State and the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike on a PIL petition, which has questioned the legality of BBMP’s project of microchipping stray dogs to keep track of vaccination and birth control data of such dogs.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice N.V. Anjaria and Justice K.V. Aravind passed the order on the petition filed by Save Our Animals Charitable Trust, Bengaluru, and Neveena Kamath, an environmental activist.

‘No legal authority’

It has been contended in the petition that the BBMP Commissioner has no legal authority to approve implanting of microchips in street dogs as per the provisions of the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023 framed under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, 1960.

The petitioners have contended that microchipping is mandatory only for breeders when pups are sold by them under the provisions of PCA (Dog Breeding and Marketing Rules, 2017, and when the pups are sold by pet shops under PCA (Pet Shop) Rules.

The petitioners have claimed that microchipping of around three lakh street dogs in Bengaluru city can manifest into adverse tissue response, movement of chip within the body of the animal, interference of electromagnetic wave and rick of cancer as these stray dogs have no owner to take of their health needs after implanting microchips.

Ignoring representation

Pointing out that the BBMP has gone ahead with the pilot project of microchipping street dogs ignoring the representation submitted by the petitioners, who have studies the issues related to microchipping, and other animal activists, the petitioners have complained that the BBMP, which has utterly failed to effectively implement ABC programme, instead, has come with the unapproved mechanism of microchipping street dogs.

It has been contended in the petition that the request for proposal issued by the BBMP for microchipping project does not contain any provision on accountability of either the government authorities or the private agency, which would implant microchips, for the adverse consequences which the dogs will have to face after microchipping.

The BBMP has neither sought permission nor consulted the Central Monitoring and Coordination Committee set up under the ABC Rules for the matter related to policy intervention apart from not consulting the Central or the State Animal Welfare Boards. The petitioners have also contended that the BBMP has never constituted a Local Authority ABC Monitoring Committee in the manner prescribed by the apex court.

Published - November 19, 2024 09:08 pm IST