TimesView The increasing stray dog menace in cities leaves us with a bloody reminder every now and then but it’s back to square one in distressingly short time. It is the duty of civic agencies to curb dog populations through humane birth control measures. It does not seem to be working – the Supreme Court has said as much. The authorities cannot simply pass the buck to animal rights activists. It’s also the duty of citizens, as much as it is of municipalities, to ensure roadsides are not turned into festering garbage dumps, offering strays a feast of leftovers.

BENGALURU: In what is now too familiar a tale, a five-year-old boy was mauled to death by a pack of stray dogs in Bajjegowdanapalya, Soladevanahalli, on the outskirts of Bengaluru city, on Tuesday. Durgesh, the fourth of five children of Mallappa and Mallamma — labourers from Kalaburagi district — succumbed to his injuries around 1.30pm.Mallappa and Mallamma had moved to the city three years ago and were working at a construction site near Soladevanahalli. Mallappa told reporters his son was returning home after purchasing a packet of biscuits when he was attacked. Durgesh had not gone to the local anganwadi on Tuesday because he was ill, Mallappa said.“I returned home from work for lunch and Durgesh told me he was ill and didn’t want to eat rice,” Mallappa said. “So he took Rs 5 from me to buy a packet of biscuits. After I gave him the money, I went to have a bath. A little later, I heard my son screaming. I rushed out and found nearly a dozen dogs attacking my son. Passersby chased the dogs away.”Police said a local took Mallappa and Durgesh to a nearby private hospital on his motorbike. “Doctors advised him to shift Durgesh to Saptagiri hospital. However, Durgesh was declared dead on reaching Saptagiri,” police said.Tuesday’s incident, which occurred outside Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) limits, triggered anger over local officials’ apathy in handling the stray dog menace. “There are many eateries on the Soladevanahalli to Ajjegowdanapalya stretch,” police quoted locals as saying. “Staff at these eateries throw leftovers on the road and dogs feast on them. Paying guest accommodations in the area also dump food in vacant plots. This is why the stray dog population is increasing. Whenever we try to chase these dogs away, animal activist complain to police against us. Will animal activists bring the boy back to life?”