Baramulla: A five-year-old girl was critically injured after stray dogs attacked her in the Gund Ibrahim area of Pattan in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district on Tuesday.
The injured minor girl has been identified as Ayman Zehra.
She was immediately shifted to the Trauma Hospital Pattan wherefrom she was referred to a Srinagar hospital for advanced treatment.
Soon after the incident, massive protests broke out in the area.
The protesters demanded an end to the mayhem created by the stray dogs.
“The stray dog attacks have become a routine here. Elderly people and kids are the vulnerable lot of such incidents,” said Muhammad Shaban, a local while protesting against the authorities.
A relative of the injured girl said that she was about to reach her school when the stray dogs attacked her.
“She was going to attend the school for the first time. The joy of her attending the school has turned into sadness for the family due to this incident,” said a relative of the injured girl.
The incident is third of its kind in the area.
Earlier, a 10-year-old boy was mauled to death after a pack of dogs attacked him in February this year.
In another similar incident, a three-year-old boy was also injured.
The locals here alleged that the members of a nearby municipal council were bringing stray dogs from other areas in trucks and setting them free in this area as a result of which dog population in the area had increased manifold and become a major issue for the locals.
Though the authorities in the past assured the agitating people that if anyone was found bringing dogs in trucks and setting them free in this area, stern action would be taken against them and their vehicles would be seized.
However, the authorities have so far failed to come up with a solution to the growing dog population in the area.