A strange heading for a story. However, keeping pets & looking after them properly is part of the human psyche for ages. Keeping dogs & cats as companions has been going on for ages including the period of “Mahabharat” or the kings & queens in England & France.
When we live in places like USA or Singapore we have no hesitation in picking up our pets’ poo. However, when we are in our own “Bharat”, we consider this a menial job, left for lowly placed MCD or RWA’s. Why??? Because there is no punishment or fine or we become the 1st class citizens in our own country & think that it is below our dignity to clean up. Though I must admire those few, who always maintain decorum & clean up, by carrying bags & scoopers. Hats off to them!
Fed up with the attitude of a few & constant rumblings of our residents about the nauseating smell & ugly scenes in back lanes & in the park, early in the morning, our RWA decided to take a few steps to curb this practice & drill some sense in some adamant pet owners.
1. We deputed a few guards in the park in the mornings & at night to stop those who bring pets in the park without leash & get their pets to evacuate by using it as a toilet. We as RWA have always permitted pets, though many residents are against this practice. Our conditions have been that the owner must carry a scooper or bag, clean up the poo & pet should be on leash. Several banners & notices have been placed in the park & streets. Our guards enforced the rule by politely & firmly telling the residents to follow this practice. Guards were instructed to take photos or make videos of the offenders. It had a saluting effect & except a few adamant souls, people complied.
2. Guards were given a cash reward of Rs one hundred for clicking each photo & forwarding those to the secretary/president of RWA. Those photos, in turn were posted in several WhatsApp groups with the address of the offender.
3.For the 1st time in the history of S Block or GK-1, photos/videos were shared with the Sanitary inspector of MCD, who showed exemplary courage, with the support of RWA, to issue challans & notices to a few offenders. This information was again shared with more than 700+ members/residents of the area & it had the desired effect. The social pressure worked.
We also appreciated the owners, who were cleaning up, by sharing their pictures, so that others get motivated.
The overall effect pf these steps is quite good & we hope that the pet owners will respect the sentiments of fellow residents & inculcate the habit of cleaning up, to save the environment & help in maintaining cleanliness in the surrounding areas. We all know the unhygienic conditions created by scattered dog poop.
In a related development, I, as the President of S Block RWA, took up the matter of stray dogs, enforcing the rule of mandatory registration of pets & monkey menace with the new Deputy director of Vet. Dept. of MCD, Dr. Sneha Arya, who has assured all help. Will have further discussions with her to ensure that strays are neutered & vaccinated, as not to cause any rabies cases. (See another on dogs article by Rajiv)
