A four-year-old girl, Khadeera Banu, from Davangere, Karnataka, succumbed to rabies on August 17 at Bengaluru’s Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health (IGICH), four months after a stray dog mauled her inside her home. The tragedy has reignited debates over stray dog management in India, with Karnataka reporting 2.86 lakh dog bite cases and 26 suspected rabies deaths between January and August 2025.

Khadeera was attacked on April 27 while playing outside her home in Shastri Layout, Davangere. The dog bit her face and body, leaving her critically injured. Initially treated locally, she was transferred to IGICH on April 28. Dr. Keshav, who treated her, confirmed rabies through CSF fluid tests, noting she initially stabilized but returned in August in a deeper encephalopathic state, suffering from "dumb rabies" characterized by paralysis. Despite medical efforts, she passed away on Sunday noon. Her family claimed to have spent ₹8 lakh on treatment, though hospital estimates suggest costs were around ₹60,000-70,000.

The incident underscores Karnataka’s escalating stray dog crisis. The state’s infectious disease report recorded 5,652 dog bite cases between August 4 and 10 alone. Earlier this month, Karnataka Lokayukta Justice BS Patil criticized the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) for failing to control stray dog attacks, citing an independent probe by Dr. Vamshikrishna that highlighted the lack of observation homes for aggressive dogs. In a related incident, two college students were hospitalized after a stray dog attack on Bengaluru University’s campus.

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Nationally, the issue has drawn significant attention. On August 11, the Supreme Court ordered the relocation of all stray dogs in Delhi-NCR to shelters within eight weeks, emphasizing sterilization, vaccination, and professional handling to curb rabies, which claims 18,000-20,000 lives annually in India. The order, prompted by the death of a six-year-old Delhi girl, Chavi Sharma, sparked protests from animal rights groups, who called it “impractical” and “illegal” under the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023. A subsequent Supreme Court bench reserved judgment on pleas challenging the directive, questioning premature dog removals.

Khadeera’s death has intensified calls for effective stray dog management, balancing public safety with humane solutions, as Karnataka grapples with its growing rabies crisis.

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