Dog-ged pursuit at IGI

The Indira Gandhi International Airport is under attack not just from nature’s aerial troops—birds—but also their accompanying ground force—dogs, reports Neelam Pandey.

The Indira Gandhi International Airport is under attack not just from nature’s aerial troops—birds—but also their accompanying ground force—dogs.

HT Image

Alarmed at the rising incidents of dogs straying on to the runway, the Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) has sought help from the MCD to provide them a dog catching van twice a week. Not only this, DIAL has also asked the MCD to look into the possibility of opening a dog sterilisation centre in the airport’s vicinity.

Within just three months, (October 1 to December 31, 2009), 200 dogs were captured and relocated from the airport as against 169 between January 1 and September 30, 2009. Not just dogs, a total of 571 animals, including jackals, snakes, monkeys etc were captured at the airport last year.

These suggestions were made in the Airfield Environment Management Committee (AEMS) meeting held last month.

“They must contact the NGOs that carry out sterilisation for the MCD,” said Deep Mathur, director press and information, MCD.

DIAL also asked the MCD to look into illegal slaughtering near the IGIA airport that attracts birds leading to bird-hit accidents.

“Indiscriminate dumping of animal waste inside the airport buffer zone, presence of wild animals like blue bulls and jackals, slaughtering and open animal garbage at sanitary landfill Ghazipur and tall trees near take off and approach path — which are an obstruction to aircraft and an attraction to birds— are major threats,” DIAL said.