Moving lakhs of stray dogs to shelters that do not exist yet is a task that would require significant funding and time. Manpower shortage, dogs' territorial instincts and local resistance are among the other challenges for civic bodies struggling to carry out basic tasks such as keeping neighbourhoods clean and drains unclogged.

Across India, tensions over stray dog feeding have reignited after the Supreme Court's recent order on removing strays from public places in Delhi-NCR.