Dogs kill three children in UP village, locals say 14 killed in 4 months

Villagers in Khairabad area of Sitapur district are in panic after feral dogs, which once used to feed on animal remains thrown away by slaughterhouses, killed three children in separate incidents early Tuesday morning.

Station Officer (SO) of Khairabad police station, Sachin Kumar Singh said two girls - Shamli (11) and Komal (12) and a boy named Khalid (12) - were killed in by the dogs in Tikaria, Gurpulia and Khulia villages.

The incident created panic among locals who have decided not to allow their children to step outside alone. Locals said feral dogs have killed at least 14 children in the past four months around an eight-km radius in Khairabad.

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Infuriated by the killings on Tuesday, a group of villagers launched a drive to exterminate the dogs and shot dead three of them.

“All the children were attacked by the dogs when they were alone. The villagers rushed to rescue the children after hearing their screams but failed to save their lives. The back-to-back incidents have angered villagers and subsequently shot dead some dogs in the area,” Station Officer Sachin Kumar Singh said.

District Magistrate (DM) of Sitapur, Sheetal Verma conceded that the dogs were indeed attacking children for the past four months . She said the authorities of Khairabad municipality and forest department have been asked to carry out a survey of dogs in the area.

“The initial survey revealed that over 100 of dogs in the area have turned rogue and been repeatedly attacking children after the closure of slaughterhouse in the area. The dogs earlier used to feed on remains that slaughterhouses used to dispose off,” she said.

Verma said the forest department and Khairabad municipality are already working on it and have examined nearly 25 dogs in the area so far. “We have also sought help from Lucknow Municipal Corporation for catching dogs as there is no dog-catching squad in Sitapur,” she said.