Animal rights activist Kamna Pandey, former member of Animal Rights Commission, said that she has lodged FIRs in two cruelty incidents and is getting multiple complaints on a daily basis from animal lovers.

 

"The first FIR has been lodged at Gudamba police station against a man who killed a puppy by cutting its leg, while the second has been lodged against a group for breaking the limbs of dogs before killing them in Husainabad area," she said.

 

"We have also got reports that some people have hired private persons to kill dogs ' title='stray dogs '>stray dogs in their localities. People must understand that killing dogs is not the solution, and, in fact, it leads to retaliation by animals in self-defence. For instance, the female dog whose puppy was killed by a man in Gudamba turned aggressive and has attacked a few people," she said.

 

Cases of cruelty to animals have been reported from Prayagraj where a youth tied crackers to the tail of a stray dog in Naini area and set it on fire. The dog suffered burn injuries and later succumbed.

 

In Kanpur, a group of men broke the teeth of a dog with a hammer after he bit a local resident.

 

Police action is these cases has not been reported.

 

After the last month's Thakurganj incident in which a minor girl was mauled to death by stray dogs, Lucknow Municipal Corporation has stepped up its drive to sterilise stray dogs.

 

"Some volunteers have informed that LMC squads are using wired iron rods to catch pigs at some places, which is banned under the Prevention of Cruelty Act 1979," Pandey informed.

 

Chief veterinary officer, LMC, Dr Arvind Kumar Rao refuted all allegations of cruelty by squads and said that animals are caught in the most humane way possible.

 

The sterilisation drive has also been stepped up and two more centres have been started, he added.