Child Mauled by Stray Pack: Wagholi Residents Demand Action

In Wagholi, a six-year-old boy was severely injured on Friday morning when a pack of five to six stray dogs attacked him. The child, Naitik Shivnath Tupe, was bitten on the neck and scalp while playing near his home. He also sustained a head injury from falling during the assault. Bystanders intervened, driving the dogs away and alerting the boy's family, who rushed him to Sassoon General Hospital.

Doctors at Sassoon General Hospital administered the first dose of an anti-rabies vaccine and performed a CT scan. The boy underwent a procedure to clean his wounds under general anaesthesia and received anti-rabies serum around his neck injuries. He is currently in the paediatric intensive care unit, receiving antibiotics and supportive care, with his condition reported as stable. The boy's grandmother expressed distress over the deep injuries and urged the civic body to address the stray dog issue.

This incident followed another dog attack in Wagholi on the same Friday, where a 14-year-old, Prathamesh Dhotre, was bitten on both forearms. He received treatment at Sassoon Hospital and was discharged. In response, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) began a special dog-catching drive in Wagholi. While initial efforts on Friday were unsuccessful in locating the specific dogs involved, a follow-up drive on Saturday saw teams vaccinate approximately 60 stray dogs and capture 11. Ten of the captured dogs were unsterilized and were vaccinated and sterilized, while one already sterilized dog was also vaccinated. These dogs are being held for observation before potential release.