Bitten by stray dog at Noida society, 1-yr-old child dies; residents protest

Dr Ajeet of Yatharth Hospital said, “The child had suffered damage to his intestines. He succumbed to post-operative complications, and the body was handed over to his family.”

The child has been identified as Arvind. His parents, Rajesh Kumar and Sapna, left for their home in Madhya Pradesh, police said. His uncle, Vijay Kumar, said, “ We could not save him… we knew there was an issue with stray dogs there but we didn’t think they’d attack the child…”

On Tuesday, residents held a protest outside the society, temporarily slowing traffic before police and Noida Authority officials arrived to speak to them, including ACP Rajneesh and officer on special duty Induprakash Singh of the Noida Authority.

Shweta Raj, a resident, claimed: “I have been living here for a year and every two-three months, there are similar dog-related incidents… I don’t feel safe sending my children out. Now there is an uproar because a child has died, but the problem isn’t new.”

Another resident, Sudhanshu Sinha, said, “What happened to this child could happen to the children of our families too… we are tired of constantly complaining about this for years. About 150 people have signed a petition so far.” The petition expresses dissatisfaction against the “inaction of the Apartment Owners Association (AOA)” and “animal activists” allegedly feeding dogs in the society, which some residents said has allegedly worsened the issue.

Senior police officers along with OSD Singh later entered the society to listen to the concerns of residents, agreeing in the end to remove the dogs from there owing to the gravity of the incident. The Noida Authority also began the process of removing the dogs in animal ambulance vehicles, with dog catchers entering the society to round them up. The OSD added, “Four dog shelters have been approved and we are building them. In the future when there are dogs like this, they can be accommodated in the shelter.”

Meanwhile, residents filed a complaint regarding the matter against the AOA, the security agency, and Noida Authority. Police said they would look into the complaint.