Amid the continuing public anger over the increase in dog menace in the city, a four-year-old boy was injured in an attack by a pack of strays.
The incident occurred in Maruti Nagar Colony, Hyderabad, on Tuesday evening.
The boy, Rishi, was playing outside his house with some friends when a pack of dogs attacked him.
"My child was playing along with two other kids while 4-5 dogs attacked them," Rishi's mother, Bhagyalakshmi, a daily wage worker, said.
He was rescued by some locals who rushed to the spot hearing the cry and chased away the dogs.
The boy was bitten on his right hand and leg by the dogs.
Bhagyalakshmi blamed dog feeders for the rise in stray attacks in the area.
"Earlier, we had complained to the municipal authorities and they had come to catch the dogs but they were immediately released. The people here keep feeding these dogs despite our objections. We demand that these dogs should be taken away by the municipal authorities as it is creating problems and attacking people," she said.
On Sunday, a five-year-old boy was mauled to death by a pack of street dogs at a housing society in Erukula Basti, in Bagh Amberpet in Hyderabad. The boy, Pradeep, had accompanied his father, Gangadhar, who was working as security personnel in the residential complex where the incident took place.
At least 2-3 dogs attacked him while he was roaming alone.
Upon hearing his child's cry, the distressed father rushed to the spot and took him to a nearby hospital. However, he succumbed to his injuries during the treatment.
Following the death of Pradeep, Telangana minister KT Rama Rao said that he would work in full capacity to ensure such incidents do not repeat in future.
"We've been trying to tackle street dog menace in our municipalities. We've created animal care centres and animal birth control centres. My sincere condolences to the family and we'll ensure that our best is done so that these incidents are not repeated," he said.
As public anger grows, Telangana Special Chief Secretary Arvind Kumar on Wednesday directed the officials to pay special attention to controlling the stray dog menace in GHMC limits.
He instructed GHMC officials to immediately carry out Animal Birth Control (ABC) sterilisation operations.
Municipal authorities have been directed to restrict the hotels, restaurants, function halls, and meat markets within the GHMC limits from dumping waste on the streets. Due to the possible increase in the number of stray dogs in the city, it was ordered to take appropriate measures to prevent them immediately, the release said.
Kumar said the areas where most cases are registered should be identified and immediate action taken there.
The authorities have been directed to move veterinary teams to those areas and take appropriate measures to curb them.
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