DHAKA's dog lovers are barking mad over plans by authorities in the Bangladesh capital to round-up around 30,000 strays and dump them outside the city.
Officials say the stray dog population has exploded since a sterilisation programme faltered, adding residents increasingly complain they can't move around freely.
Street dogs are a common sight in Dhaka, with packs of canines roaming freely and sleeping on pavements.
Many are fed scraps by dog lovers in restaurants and markets, pet stores near me while they also scavenge from waste dumps and bins.
They also play a vital role in keeping the streets clean by driving away rats and other vermin, say animal rights campaigners.
However, Dhaka south city corporation's spokesman Mohammad Abu Naser said they had become a menace.
"We're planning to relocate the stray dogs in Dhaka South to remote localities outside the capital," he told AFP.
He said the operation would start next month.
The relocation plan has triggered outrage among animal lovers, who warn it could cause more problems than it fixes.
"The relocation of such a huge number of dogs will be catastrophic," said Naim Ibne Islam Adi, the head of Bangladesh's largest shelter for stray dogs and cats.
"Hungry dogs will attack people. Human versus dog conflicts will rise."
Naser defended the move, however, saying the dogs would be fed and taken care of despite being relocated to "remote" locations.
He did not detail what the feeding plans were.
Canine campaigner Adi said the coronavirus lockdown showed how strays could easily go hungry.
In one incident, a pack of hungry dogs killed two deer in a zoo, he said.
City authorities used to kill up to 20,000 strays a year to control their numbers, but a 2015 court order banned the culling and animal rights groups introduced a sterilisation programme.
Activists said they planned to file another court petition -- this time to stop the relocation.
Clifford had previously denied killing Carol Hunt, 61, the wife of horseracing commentator John Hunt, and their daughters, Louise Hunt, 25, and Hannah Hunt, 28. (Photo: Hertfordshire Police /Handout via REUTERS)
Man pleads guilty to crossbow murders of BBC presenter’s family
A 26-YEAR-OLD man on Wednesday pleaded guilty to murdering two daughters of a BBC sports commentator and stabbing to death their mother in a crossbow attack.
Kyle Clifford had previously denied killing Carol Hunt, 61, the wife of horseracing commentator John Hunt, and their daughters, Louise Hunt, 25, and Hannah Hunt, 28.
However, appearing via video link at Cambridge Crown Court in eastern England, Clifford changed his pleas.
The court heard that Clifford tied up Louise Hunt, his former partner, binding her arms and ankles with duct tape before shooting her in the chest with a crossbow at the family home last July.
He pleaded guilty to three counts of murder, one count of false imprisonment, and two counts of possessing offensive weapons. However, Clifford denied raping Louise.
The murders took place at the family home in the commuter town of Bushey, near Watford, northwest of London.
Clifford was arrested in July following a manhunt after the bodies of the three women were discovered.
(With inputs from AFP)