Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district have directed schools to appoint a teacher as a nodal officer responsible for monitoring stray dogs on and around campus grounds. Under the order, each school must designate one teacher to watch for stray dog activity, report sightings to the municipal committee, and coordinate directly with civic officials. To streamline communication, the directive instructs schools to publicly display the selected teacher’s name and phone number on boundary walls.
The move has triggered strong criticism from educators, who argue that the responsibility is inappropriate, undermines their professional dignity, and diverts attention from academic duties. Many teachers have expressed discomfort with being assigned animal-monitoring roles typically handled by municipal authorities. Despite the backlash, senior education officials have not yet issued any clarification or response.
This is not the first time such an instruction has caused controversy. Last month in Chhattisgarh, school principals were similarly tasked with monitoring stray dogs, a decision that drew political criticism and concerns about overburdening educators. The debate also comes in the wake of a Supreme Court order issued in November, which mandated the permanent removal of stray dogs from schools, sports facilities, transport hubs, and hospitals.
