ORDER :

1. Unfortunate indeed are the circumstances leading up to the human-animal conflict situation that we are called upon to resolve in these proceedings. Our State that is spread over 38,800 Square Kilometers of land is home to about 34 million human inhabitants, and wedged as it is between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats, it also boasts of substantial marine and forest wealth and the fact that it is home to many species of animals - domestic, wild and liminal. Coexistence with other species has always been an integral part of human existence in this State. In recent times, however, there have been a number of incidents of human-animal conflict reported from various corners of the State and it is one such issue that confronts us today.

The issue before us:

2. We have been shown reports of attacks on members of our citizenry by communal dogs that roam our streets in search of food and water. While the circumstances under which the attacks took place are not entirely clear, the reality is that many persons have suffered fatalities and injuries and the time has now come to direct the State administration to take immediate measures to prevent such incidents in future. This is a