Victory for Bengaluru pet owners? BBMP’s plans to limit number of pet dogs put on hold

It has only been three days since the BBMP stirred a controversy by announcing that its new pet licensing byelaws had been approved by the Urban Development Secretariat. But thanks to proactive campaigning and pressure from dog lovers and pet owners in the city, the byelaws have now been put on hold. The byelaws mandated that apartment dwellers could only have one dog per apartment and those in independent houses could have only three. Further, the BBMP also put out an “approved” list of breeds that could be reared in Bengaluru apartments. Not only did the list appear heavily plagiarised from a similar one published by the Singapore Housing and Development Board, but it did not include popular breeds such as the Golden Retriever, Cocker Spaniel, Beagle or the Indian stray (indie). Also read: BBMP's 'approved' dog breeds list makes no sense, and is eerily similar to Singapore's What drew even more ire was that the byelaws were retrospective – which meant that people who already have more than one pet or a non-approved breed were required to give them up. Bengaluru Mayor Sampath Raj, who met with pet owners and animal activists like Sanjana Madappa, Chinthana Gopinath and Priya Chetty Rajagopal on Wednesday, acknowledged the anger and concerns of pet parents in the city. “In many apartments, there is more than one dog and people are keeping them as pets. The dogs are like family members. And to suddenly abandon any dog is like giving away their son or daughter, which they don’t want to do,” the Mayor said. “And most of the second or third pets adopted by them are stray dogs which are not being maintained well by the BBMP… We are withholding this [byelaws] until we further discuss with the council and we’ll talk to our officers as well. Till the time we take a final decision, let the status quo remain,” he added. The Mayor also acknowledged the ‘Not Without My Dog’ movement on social media which hundreds of concerned dog lovers and pet owners joined in. On Wednesday evening, in fact, the hashtag trended on Twitter, with people strongly opposing the BBMP’s draconian and ill-thought byelaws. They posted photos of their dogs, expressed that the canines were a part of their family and promised to fight the authorities if they tried to take away their furry companions. There were a few witty memes in the mix too. Check out some of the tweets below. Dear @BBMPCOMM , Pls fix the SWDs, potholes, and infrastructure. Revive the lakes. Stop blaming other parastatals for your failures. Don't come into my home and say how many dogs I can own. #NotWithoutMyDog https://t.co/IiF06iZrdn— Theja Ram (@thejaram92) June 6, 2018 BBMP's 'approved' dog breeds list makes no sense. And they are so disingenuous that they seem to have plaigirised a list from Singapore. Indian dogs not allowed it seems. #notwithoutmydog https://t.co/gm3bWk4naM— Dhanya Rajendran (@dhanyarajendran) June 7, 2018 Hey #BBMP When I said I felt like Bolognese, I meant pasta, not dog. Here's my little paralysed #indiannativedog who didn't make it to your "approved breeds" list. Can he stay? He can't walk or anything. @BBMP_MAYOR @BBMPCOMM #NotWithoutMyDog pic.twitter.com/CzI7PMuKOt— Anoopa Anand (@LeftarmSpinster) June 6, 2018 I have 2 sons. They want me to give up one. What if they asked you to do that? What would you do?#BBMP#NotWithoutMyDog @BBMPCommissioner @BBMPMayor @AnushkaSharma @iamsrk @imVkohli @msdhoni @TheJohnAbraham @R_Khanna @shahidkapoor @mrsfunnybones @akshaykumar @Raghu_Dixit @trdp pic.twitter.com/zja2FtTsCb — Awanti Agarwala (@a_awanti) June 6, 2018 Boneafite's take on the new mandate by BBMP about one dog per flat and three per individual house!! Please read the article below and comment your views.https://t.co/GazBo4tAJo … …#BBMP #LoveAllDogsAlike #BoneafitesTakeOnBBMPMandate #NotWithoutMyDog #Bangalore pic.twitter.com/6v51xClgBz — Boneafite (@boneafite) June 6, 2018 I am a father to my 4 dogs at home and to the multiple on the streets. And i would like people to try to BS me on 'auction your pets' or 'choose the favourite one' or worse try taking them away from me.#NotWithoutMyDogs#BBMP#NotWithoutMyDog @BBMPCOMM@BBMP_MAYOR@BBMP pic.twitter.com/1TTjwMRVYi— Ankur Bhatnagar (@lpFyyUbGx84UqUi) June 6, 2018 See man #BBMP. Everyone is making fun of you. This is not cool. You're just coming off looking like a clown, because your bye laws are under-researched and your logic, malnourished. Be wise. Talk to your citizens. @BBMP_MAYOR @BBMPCOMM #NotWithoutMyDog pic.twitter.com/FtPrtG2JpR— Anoopa Anand (@LeftarmSpinster) June 6, 2018 A lab rescued beagle came home to me 2 yrs ago & has courageously started trusting humans again as I strive to give him a normal loved life. He sleeps, eats & goes on trips with us. Dare & try to take him away BBMP, a mother will fight like you have never known. #NotWithoutMyDog pic.twitter.com/SDpZaTwp9e— Yogini Gulkotwar (@GYogini) June 6, 2018 #BBMP - there are other things you need to pay attention to, not curbing how many kids I can have in MY apartment. #notwithoutmydog #sanitizeBBMP #getaholdofyourself #petdaddy #notwithyou #petparent #revamptherules #pathetic pic.twitter.com/WDqevjlFIc — Sanjeev Nair (@_sanjeevnair) June 6, 2018 Maya and Lucy are at our shelter because of your failed ABC program! Thank you @bbmp_mayor @BBMPCOMM #NotWithoutMyDog pic.twitter.com/m026krsIpG — Mandy Vasudevan (@MandyVasudevan) June 6, 2018 When you can't even get married without your kids around. #NotWithoutMyDog pic.twitter.com/FrJA7kMOOW— Sahitya Madhavan (@SahityaMadhavan) June 6, 2018 #notwithoutmydog@BBMP_MAYOR The one dog one apartment Proposed rule is unacceptable .we want this withdrawn immediately @siddaramaiah @hd_kumaraswamy @rajeevgowda @krishnabgowda @thekjgeorge @dineshgrao pic.twitter.com/oIOzoWdYHq — Dipali Sikand (@SikandDipali) June 5, 2018 Would you ask anyone to.giveup a family member? Would you actually give them up even if asked?! @BBMP_MAYOR #NotWithoutMyDogs #NotWithoutMyDog pic.twitter.com/edcQPx875b — Devisri Sarkar (@DevisriSarkar) June 6, 2018   A post shared by Arpita Bhattacharya (@isshshsh) on Jun 6, 2018 at 11:39am PDT  I love Bangalore so much , anyone who knows me can vouch for that !ever since that fateful day , when I left that city.. I have always been craving to go back. . . However, this is first time today I feel happy to have left that place... Honestly I could not have this thought for a moment ...that I have to give up on either of my kids. . .. . #bbmp you are as horrid as you can be. Who the hell have given you the rights to come inside our homes and decide for our families. . . Our babies are off limits for u ! Stay away. . . Friends in blore : all pet parents stand by you. Fight this out for all of us #notwithoutmydog A post shared by Soumi Dey Sarkar (@soumi_ds) on Jun 6, 2018 at 11:27am PDT  BBMP,Limit on number of dogs in a house is unacceptable. Please withdraw this thoughtless law. #NOTWITHOUTMYDOG #PETSAREFAMILY A post shared by Barks 'n Licks (@barksnlicks) on Jun 6, 2018 at 10:50pm PDT  #notwithoutmydog #bbmp #bengaluru #takebackyourwords A post shared by Garima Gupta (@garimagupta21) on Jun 6, 2018 at 11:00pm PDT  Here to share my thoughts on BBMP's rules. I still can't believe that they are laying restrictions on pet owners. When there are so many problems in India yet to be solved, from nowhere, BBMP comes with this pathetic, inapt & immoral plan to cause hardship to us and our loved ones. There are so many pet lovers who provide food, affection and safety to many homeless animals. They wander the street and are exposed to danger all the time. It is we who extend our love to them. To be frank, it's the govt which is supposed to be doing all this. And if you had been doing it right, then why are so many animals still wandering the streets, suffering without adequate food, shelter, and exposed to so many diseases, every single day? It's a shame for our government that many private animal aid organisations are doing a better job in taking care of such animals. An other fact, Though there is no official order, Chennai corporation parks never allows our pets to accompany us. How cruel is that? First give our dogs space to run! Then let's think about laying rules. I'm sure every pet owner regards his/her pets as family members. And asking to give up a family member is just insane. Most of us even do our duty when it comes to parenting and training the dog. Even if the government is not taking initiatives to save other animals, I kindly request you to just sit back and watch us, do your job. Do feel free to extend your hands of help, but don't be a hindrance to us and our loved ones. Earth is to be shared equally with all the living souls. I hereby show my support, not only to my dog but also to every single animal on this planet. Withdraw this rule BBMP. #notwithoutmydog A post shared by P £ {\} ¢ [-] U (@shvan_the_polygarhound) on Jun 6, 2018 at 10:10pm PDT A source from the expert committee, which was originally formed to formulate the pet licensing laws, said that they would take the public opinion into account during further consultation on the matter. While there is no official word or redaction yet from the Urban Development Secretariat, activists who have spoken up against the byelaws are optimistic and believe that the provisions will ultimately not hold. Also read: No BBMP, you cannot take away my dogs: Your byelaws are vicious, writes a Bengalurean