Community Dogs of Centrum Park

The Beginning

Indiabulls Centrum Park is a residential society in Sector 103 of Gurugram spread over 23 acres having a population of nearly 4000. The Society didn’t have a proper boundary wall therefore during the construction stage, many stray dogs moved in and out of the Society looking for food and shelter being offered by many good Samaritans of the Society

As a result by February 2021 there were nearly 16 dogs within/close vicinity of the Society including a litter of 6 or 7 pups. The place of birth of these pups later became a serious point of contest between a NGO and the residents of the Society. All these dogs were being taken care off and fed by a small group of dedicated women hereafter being referred to as “The Feeders”. These dogs operated singly or in packs and doggedly protected their small territories from any form of incursion  The feeders had given them interesting names like Cutie, Bhuri, Candy, Choco, Gudiya, Golu, Sukdu etc. 

As there was no support from other stakeholders including the MCG, many of these dogs remained unvaccinated or were not neutered or spayed thereby posing a threat to the residents and their pets as also opening the possibilities of increase in their population. The Builder who controlled the Society, most of the residents and the newly elected RWA which I headed as President were oblivious of the situation and considered these dogs as a minor irritation or at best a source of slight discomfort. However as these pups started growing and population in the Society increased, minor problems related to these dogs started coming up.

Raging Conflict

In March 2021, the RWA pressurised the Builder to complete the fence and plug all the gaps in the boundary wall as per the design of the gated Society. Completion of the fence work had a serious impact on the lives of these stray dogs as some of them got left out of the Society premises and those within found their freedom to roam the fields curtailed. A dispute also commenced between the RWA and the feeders about the pack of 10 dogs which the feeders wanted to bring in to the gated premises of the Society. This was despite the fact that this pack had been allocated adequately protected adjoining space where all residents had the freedom to go and feed them as per their convenience.

In June 2021 with the support of People for Animals (PFA), the feeders approached the police and forced the RWA to open the gate and let this pack of dogs in. There was great hue and cry in the Society against this arbitrary action of the powerful NGO and the police. The residents came forward in a big numbers and complained to the MCG. This was followed by a number of meetings with the residents and RWA on one side and PFA and the feeders on the other side. During these parleys, I was exposed to the highly egoistic and power focussed approach of some of these social workers. I was also privileged to receive two calls from the Chairperson of PFA wherein our RWA was given veiled threats to toe the line of her troopers on ground. 

The situation deteriorated as the number of dogs within the gated complex now reached 16. The feeders were not able to feed them adequately and the hungry and agitated dogs started damaging property in search of food. As they were let free in the Society, there were large number of fights within themselves and with the pets. There were also constant fights between the residents and the feeders resulting in many of cases of physical assault and presence of police became a common feature in the Society. The feeders alleged that the RWA and the residents were ill treating the dogs and harassing the them whereas the residents felt that the feeders with the support of PFA had converted the Society into a stray dog arena with constant danger for the children and the elderlies. 

Even during these desperate times with so much differences of opinion with the feeders , I had noticed a great sense of compassion, sacrifice and dedication in most of the feeders and the residents thus giving me a hope that this vexed matter could be resolved peacefully. Therefore, we continued to engage the feeders and tried ways and means to minimise the conflicts by fixing feeding points, feeding timings, sleeping areas etc. An agreement was also reached with the feeders to shift the feeding point for the pack of 10 dogs out side Gate No 2, their original location with proviso to keep the gate open for them to move in/out at will. 

New-borns of Sukdu

In September 2021, the situation took a turn for the worse when Sukdu (meaning skinny ) one of the dames which had not been spayed got pregnant. Fortunately for us, Sukdu moved out of the Society and gave birth to a litter of 9 pups on the periphery of the Society. There were now demands from the feeders and the NGO representatives to bring the Sukdu and her litter inside the Society which were firmly refuted by the RWA although facilitating their feeding, vaccination, medical care and adoption. 

Sukdu feeding its pups

While on adoption of stray dogs, it is discouraging that while our Society has more than 200 -300 pets of exotic breeds, not one family came up to adopt any of these pups. During this process, I also learnt of that the great Indian bias for the male gender transcends to the canines too as despite best  efforts none of the female pups of Sukadu were adopted whereas three of the male pups found homes. I also took one beautiful and an adorable male pump to my house in Paonta Sahib, more about him later.

Towards Reconciliation

Unfortunately there was no support from any of the agencies of the Government be it the Animal Welfare Board of India, the State Government or the MCG to help us find a solution to this complex problem. As a result, the uneasy relation between the feeders, pet owners, residents and the RWA continued well into 2022 despite formation of an Animal Welfare Committee as per the guidelines of Delhi High Court.  Although, the RWA and feeders started collaborating more wherein the RWA took many initiatives to provide for shelter, feeding and treatment of the dogs.

I also observed that many residents came forward to feed the dogs so as to help resolve the issue. One of our resident vets helped us in pro bono vaccination and treatment of all the dogs including the pups. I also along with some other members of the RWA occasionally started feeding the dogs and surprisingly found it to be a very  satisfying and a therapeutic activity. It also exposed me to the softer side of these canines and their urge for love, friendship and compassion. 

An unaccepted breakthrough happened on 01 March 2022 when I got a call from one of the feeders informing me that an independent interlocutor who wishes to remain anonymous with background in animal welfare was willing to help broker an agreement between the RWA and the feeders to resolve the issue. I willingly accepted the offer as I was very keen to reconcile because this avoidable conflict and tension was not helping anyone  including the poor animals. Next day, during the meeting between the RWA and the feeders he managed to make us all agree to move the biggest pack of dogs outside Gate No 2 which was their original feeding point, to keep 3 dogs  within the Society as community dogs and Sukdu along with its pups to stay in the new location adjacent to the Society Powerhouse. The RWA also agreed to provide all possible assistance in helping the feeders to take care of the dogs.

The amicable agreement between the RWA and the feeders came as a big relief for the RWA, for me personally and the entire Society. Following benefits have occurred from this agreement: -

• There has been no conflict related to the community dogs and police has never visited our Society after this. 
• The feeders are taking care of the dogs without any hindrance from anyone.
• All the dogs have been neutered/spayed/vaccinated and there is no possibility of further increase in their population.
• Proper shelter and feeding is being provided and 16 community dogs (3 inside and 13 in the vicinity) are in good health.

Conclusion

With years of experience in conflict resolution background, I found myself in deep sea while dealing with this complex issue involving multi stakeholders. I  realised that the Government and its agencies do not have time and resources to deal with such problems whereas NGOs may be having vested interests hence it is the  responsibility of the affected communities to show maturity and compassion to resolve such internal conflicts. We need to have inherent faith in the goodness of human character and have to keep the channels of communications and dialogue always open for things to progress.