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Journalism of Courage
Dog bite incidents have increased sharply across 21 Indian states and union territories between 2022 and 2024, according to a report submitted to the Supreme Court in the national stray dog management case. The report, which compiles information from affidavits filed by 24 states and union territories, also details systemic deficits in animal birth control infrastructure and data collection.
Data from the states and union territories shows a consistent rise in reported dog bite cases. Maharashtra recorded 4.85 lakh cases in 2024, up from 3.93 lakh in 2022. In the same period, Tamil Nadu’s numbers went from 3.64 lakh to 4.80 lakh and Gujarat’s more than doubled from 1.69 lakh to 3.92 lakh.
Several other states reported significant increases. Bihar’s cases rose from 1.41 lakh in 2022 to 2.63 lakh in 2024 and Karnataka’s cases doubled from 1.63 lakhs to 3.63 lakhs, while Assam’s figures quadrupled from 39,919 to 1.66 lakh. Odisha too saw a steep increase from 65,396 in 2022 to 1,66,792 two years later.
The data does not reveal whether these are only stray dog bite cases or if they include bites by pet dogs too.
The report also provides a glimpse of the operational status of Animal Birth Control (ABC) programmes in the states, which are mandated to manage the stray dog population through sterilisation and vaccination. The submissions from states indicate widespread gaps in the ABC infrastructure.
For instance, the report notes that in Bihar, “it appears that there is no ABC centre”, with the state having only 16 dog pounds – whose capacity for sterilisation is not specified. The amicus curiae noted that for a “huge State like Bihar, there would be a huge requirement of ABC centres.” In Odisha, the ABC programme is operational in only seven of its 115 urban local bodies while in West Bengal, only 24 of 128 local bodies have identified organisations to carry out the programme.
The performance of existing ABC centres was also detailed. In Delhi, which has 20 ABC centres, the amicus curiae’s submission noted that “only 15 dogs per day per center were immunized/vaccinated in last 6 months”, describing this as an “abysmally low figure for a city like Delhi.” In Madhya Pradesh, sterilisation figures for 2025 in several cities were recorded as “Nil” or “zero”, prompting the amicus to state that “there is a need to completely review the working of 17 ABC centres in the State to find out whether there is full capacity utilization.”
The report also highlights incomplete data in state affidavits, making a full assessment of the programmes difficult. For Andhra Pradesh, which reported 87 veterinarians, the amicus noted, “In absence of data regarding whether the veterinarians are posted in ABC centres… it is difficult to co-relate the data.” Bihar’s data was termed “woefully insufficient”, with the report questioning the exact role of its veterinarians and the posting locations of its dog-catching personnel.
A lack of resources was another recurrent theme through the report. It pointed out that Andhra Pradesh has 40 dog-catching vans, which the amicus suggested “may not be sufficient”. In West Bengal, the submission noted that with only one or two vehicles in most districts, it is difficult to “catch more than 5-10 dogs per day”, which affects the overall vaccination and sterilisation effort. Kerala was noted as having only 12 ABC vans which was deemed by the amicus as “totally inadequate” for its needs.
The report also reviewed the status of dedicated helplines for citizens to report grievances. Fourteen states and union territories reported that they have established helpline numbers. However, the report frequently points out a lack of supporting data on their performance. For instance, Bihar, Haryana, and Jharkhand confirmed the existence of helplines but did not provide details on the number of complaints received or resolved. On the other hand, Gujarat reported receiving 18,588 complaints, stating that “most have been resolved”, while Karnataka reported 4,026 complaints were “resolved immediately”.
