The Municipal Corporation of Chennai has been directed by the Madras High Court to take care of the 22 dogs on the IIT Madras campus and if found fit, release them, provided that there is no objection from the residents of the area. It also directed the Municipal Corporation to provide appropriate treatment to the dogs, which have been found in poor medical condition, at the veterinary hospital. Once the dogs that were found ill are declared fit, a decision shall be taken to set them free or release them to appropriate areas where they may survive without any difficulty.

The 22 dogs are now under observation and rehabilitation. The decision to task the Municipal Corporation with the care of these dogs comes after an earlier verdict of the High Court, wherein it stated that the welfare of stray dogs on campus at IIT Madras does not come within the purview of the engineering institute. It had directed that the dogs would receive external care and, hence, would receive the helping hand of the municipal body.

The issue came into the public eye when it was found that 57 dogs out of 186 that were originally kept in the IIT Madras enclosure had died. While the petitioners from animal welfare pointed out that a large number of dogs had died and that many others were sick, the IIT Madras counsel said that the dogs were fine when they were taken from the institute.