The Municipal Corporation of Dehradun (MCD) has geared itself up to impose penalties on dog owners who fail to clean up after their pets defecate in public places. A pet dog owner can be charged from Rs 500 to Rs 5,000 from December, if he or she fails to clean up after their dogs.

Dog owners letting their pets defecate in public places without worrying about any consequences have become a common scenario in city. Such actions not only make city filthy but also are cause of several diseases.

However, the corporation has decided to discourage pet owners from pursuing this practice anymore. The MCD has decided to conduct a regular checking campaign across the city to identify violators.

The officials said that corporation is already conducting a campaign against dog owners without valid dog licenses during mornings and evenings and teams will do same to identify such violators who do not clean up after their dogs soil public places. The officials said that there are many dog lovers in city but most of them lack basic civic sense to keep city clean. "Most of people involved in such practices are well-educated people who must be aware of civic sense but they still let their pets soil public places. We have received complaints that many dog owners come out with their dogs to take a stroll in early morning or late at night and let them defecate outside their houses.

The confrontation by complainants mostly leads to fights that many tend to avoid. We have decided to take action against such violators," said chief municipal health officer Dr Kailash Joshi.

He said that team members will start a campaign next month. However, he added, the corporation's priority will remain to raise awareness among locals against issue first. They will also encourage them to carry bags to clean up after their dogs defecate in open areas.