An 18-month-old boy was mauled to death by a pack of stray dogs in Jawahar Nagar area of Telangana's Hyderabad, police said on Wednesday. Chief Minister Revanth Reddy also expressed grief over the death of the toddler and directed officials to take steps to prevent recurrence of such an incident.
The incident took place on Tuesday night when the child came out of his house, police said, adding that a dog dragged him to some distance and later some strays bit him resulting in injuries.
The boy was initially rushed to a private hospital and from there referred to a state-run hospital where he died last night, news agency PTI quoted a police official at Jawahar Nagar police station as saying.
Based on a complaint from the boy's parents a case was registered.
Noting that incidents of dog attacks are being reported often, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy told officials to establish either a toll free number or a call centre to receive complaints from residents of localities where street dogs is a menace.
In a meeting, he suggested forming a committee of experts comprising veterinary doctors and representatives of animal welfare organizations like Blue Cross to study the reasons for the dog attacks, an official release said.
Telangana CM Revanth Reddy also instructed officials to take up vaccination drive to check the canine menace.
The health department officials were asked to ensure that medicines to treat patients of dog bites are available in all urban health centres in Hyderabad and all primary healthcare centres in the state.
