New Delhi: A five-year-old child was attacked by a pack of stray dogs in Yash Park area in Kadachiwadi near Pune. The child was badly injured. The attack reportedly occurred at 10:15 am on September 8.
A disturbing CCTV footage of the incident has surfaced. In the video, it can be seen that the little boy ventures out alone near his house. He gestures at a dog at a distance and calls the canine to play with him. Just then, another dog appears from the other corner and it charges at the boy. The dog is joined by 4-5 more canines and they pounce on the child, knocking him down. As the boy falls down, the dogs keep biting him. They also drag him.
The video then shows a woman coming out of a nearby house and picking up a stone to drive away the pack of dogs. However, she fails. Then, other residents also come out, hearing the screams. Together, they are able to rescue the boy, who is severely injured in the attack. The dogs are scared away by sticks.
In another similar incident reported from Nagpur, a three-year-old child was killed by stray dogs a few months ago. The incident occurred Mauda area when the child went out of his house.
Of late, there has been a surge in dog attacks across India. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare data shows that dog bite incidents have gone up by 26.5% year-on-year. There were 21.8 lakh such incidents in 2022, which went up to 27.5 lakh in 2023. Not a single city and state has remained untouched by these incidents of canine bites.