BMC Directs Mumbai University To Allow Feeding Of Community Dogs At Kalina Campus

Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has asked the University of Mumbai (MU) to ensure that community dogs living on its Kalina campus are provided food and water and that people feeding the animals are not barred from entering the premises.

BMC issues directive to MU

In a communication sent to the Vice-Chancellor, the civic body's Veterinary Health Department said the university must adhere to the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules, 2023 and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 while dealing with community dogs on the campus.

The letter follows complaints that restrictions imposed at the university had disrupted feeding arrangements for dogs living on the Kalina premises.

Survey records 94 dogs

According to the BMC, a survey carried out on the campus through Indicure Biotech Solutions Pvt Ltd recorded 94 community dogs. Of them, 78 have already been sterilised, while the remaining 16 are expected to be sterilised shortly.

The civic body said it has been undertaking sterilisation and anti-rabies vaccination of community dogs through recognised organisations as part of its population-control programme. It cited surveys conducted in 2014 and 2024 to state that the density of community dogs on Mumbai's streets has fallen by around 22% to 28% over the decade.

Mumbai’s dog management efforts

The letter also said Mumbai had an estimated 90,757 community dogs as per the latest census. Under the city's rabies-control initiative, undertaken in association with Mission Rabies-Worldwide Veterinary Service, around 1.5 lakh anti-rabies vaccinations were administered to community dogs between 2023 and 2026.

Referring to Supreme Court directions concerning community dogs at institutional premises, the BMC said institutions are expected to take measures such as securing their boundaries, installing gates and fencing where necessary, and appointing nodal officers to oversee cleanliness and management of community dogs.

Institutional premises guidelines

The civic body said 2,356 institutional premises across Mumbai have been mapped, with 8,850 community dogs identified at these locations. It added that proposals have been made to establish shelters at Anik village and Mulund, while the process of securing sites at Malvani and Mahul is nearing completion.

The BMC has also been instructed to identify suitable land where dogs removed from public and institutional premises can be accommodated, the letter stated.

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Feeding restrictions under scrutiny

However, the civic body's communication specifically said that, in the meantime, the university should comply with the ABC Rules and animal welfare law and should neither prevent feeders from entering the campus nor prohibit them from providing food to the dogs.

The issue had recently been raised by the Maharashtra Navnirman Vidyarthi Sena (MNVS), which objected to the alleged disruption of feeding arrangements at the university and sought intervention over the welfare of the animals.

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