On Shimla streets, dogs on the prowl!

It is a picture-perfect November day on Shimla’s Ridge and Mall road, bright sunshine and many holiday makers from all over India and abroad.

Then there is a jolt, almost a surreal scene as you see a pack of stray dogs, big, ferocious, menacing, prowling on this fashionable street as the crowd stop and look in disbelief and amazement.

The dog ‘gang’ sometimes numbering 30 and, even 40, makes you wonder if you’re somewhere on the African plain in wild dog country, except that these dogs are much larger than their African cousins.

Most are local pahari breeds with long hairy coats as they make their way among the milling crowds on the Mall and the Ridge, the two favourite tourist haunts in downtown Shimla.

 

Until this summer, hundreds of these stray dogs were sheltered in Shimla’s dog houses where they were regularly fed and looked after.

But for some reason, animal rights activists did not like this and moved a court here and had these dogs released into the streets saying that ‘like us these dogs had every right to be on the streets as they were stray dogs’.

To keep them in dog houses, they argued, amounted to cruelty. So, the civic authorities meekly let loose these animals onto the streets saying they are helpless .

But many Shimla citizens are asking what if these huge dog packs attack a tourist some night, maybe even a child on the street some day what then who is answerable then!

Meanwhile, all of Shimla looks on helplessly while the civic officials look the other way and murmur excuses—and dogs rule Shimla streets!