Examine the overlapping jurisdiction of central, state and local bodies in managing stray animal menace in India, with reference to recent Supreme Court directions.

Stray animal management is legally a local function, yet enforcement failures have drawn in courts and central agencies alike — as seen when NHAI told the Supreme Court in September 2026 that it cannot herd cattle off highways. The menace is thus less a legal vacuum than a coordination failure.

Statutory allocation of duty

• The Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules, 2023, notified under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, place sterilisation and vaccination on municipalities, corporations and panchayats [1][2].
• States may empower panchayats to run cattle pounds (kanji houses) and gaushala shelters — the only lawful destination for an impounded animal [2].
• The Centre's role is enabling: no dedicated central fund for stray cattle exists, only Animal Welfare Board of India assistance [2]. Civic duties stand devolved under the 74th Amendment.

Where recent SC directions cut across layers

• The Court's November 2025 direction required States/UTs to fence schools, hospitals, bus stands and railway stations and clear highways of strays within eight weeks, with municipal pick-up drives and personal accountability of Chief Secretaries [3].
• NHAI and PWD were additionally tasked with patrolling teams and a public helpline [3] — moving a road-infrastructure body into animal custody functions.
• NHAI consequently sought modification, citing a ₹7,000 crore shelter cost and arguing the statutory duty lies with States and local bodies; a special Bench was agreed to [4].

Why the overlap persists

• Mandate mismatch: NHAI owns the carriageway and collects toll but has no power to impound; local bodies hold the power without capacity.
• Unfunded mandate: ABC support is only ₹800 per dog and ₹600 per cat, with no per-animal provision for cattle [2].
• Where every office is responsible, none is answerable — so duty slides upward to whichever body has a budget.

The remedy is functional separation, not fresh litigation: engineering measures — fencing, cattle-proof underpasses, helplines and NHAI's own cattle-shelter pilot along national highways [5] — with NHAI, and impounding, sterilisation and custody with local bodies, backed by tied per-animal grants. Aligning legal power, capacity and finance at the local tier would make judicial intervention unnecessary and give effect to the spirit of decentralised self-government.