The Pune district administration on Wednesday has taken a decision to strengthen coordination among government agencies and local bodies to prevent animal cruelty and ensure timely action on complaints. The decision was taken at a meeting of the district animal cruelty prevention committee, chaired by district collector Jitendra Dudi at the collectorate office.
The administration also directed local bodies to take steps to manage stray dogs in line with Supreme Court directions. Local bodies have been asked to identify locations for shelters and feeding areas and implement time-bound programmes for sterilisation, medical treatment and other necessary services. The committee said it had received 13 complaints of animal cruelty since last year under animal cruelty prevention mechanism.
Animal husbandry deputy commissioner Rajeshkumar Wasnik said police, municipal corporations, municipal councils, nagar panchayats, gram panchayats, and government and semi-government agencies should work together on animal welfare issues. “Complaints related to animal cruelty, protection of cattle, slaughterhouses and transportation of animals should be dealt with according to a standard operating procedure (SOP),” Wasnik said. All the complaints have been resolved, officials said.
