Memorial Billboard by PETA India Highlights More Than 1,500 Community Dogs Poisoned to Death in Telangana

For Immediate Release:

14 February 2026

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Hyderabad – In memory of some 1,500 community dogs who have been poisoned to death across multiple districts in Telangana, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals India (PETA India) has erected a stark in-memory billboard condemning this large-scale, systematic killing. These dogs were reportedly killed as part of an attempt to fulfil an election promise to make villages “dog-free”—a goal pursued through illegal and violent means that reflects a deeply troubling trend and a complete disregard for requirements under the Animal Birth Control Rules (ABC) 2023 for dogs to be sterilized and returned to their localities and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960 which prohibits the killing. The initiative is to encourage accountability for one of the gravest acts of cruelty to animals the state has witnessed in recent years. The dogs were often poisoned in broad daylight with the killings taking place in Dharmapuri, Jagtial district; Shyampet and Arepally villages in Hanamkonda district; Faridpet, Wadi, Palwancha, Bhavanipet and Bandarameshwarpally in Kamareddy district; Yacharam in Rangareddy district; and Badhankurthi in Nirmal district.

The billboard is located at Nayapool Circle, High Court Road, Ghansi Bazaar, Hyderabad, Telangana 500012.

“The sheer scale and apparent coordination of these poisonings is horrifying. These dogs were mothers, babies, friends—all individuals who suffer and feel pain and did not want to die,” says a PETA India Policy Associate Shaurya Agrawal. “Such violence reflects a profound moral collapse that can even lead toward violence toward humans and other animals.”

Under Section 325 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, the maiming or killing of any animal, including by poisoning, is a cognisable offence punishable with imprisonment for up to five years, a fine, or both. And research shows that people who commit acts of cruelty to animals are often repeat offenders who move on to hurting other animals, including humans. A study published in Forensic Research & Criminology International Journal stated, “Those who engage in cruelty to animals to animals were [three] times more likely to commit other crimes, including murder, rape, robbery, assault, harassment, threats, and drug/substance abuse.” PETA India is urging authorities to ensure that those responsible are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

Community dogs are intelligent, generally peaceful animals who coexist with and are loved by many residents. PETA India—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—maintains that memorials such as this billboard are necessary not only to honour the victims, but also to confront the public and authorities with the consequences of normalising mass violence against animals.

For more information, please visit PETAIndia.com or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.

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