Sonepur: A stray dog has terrorised denizens of Sonepur town in Odisha in the last couple of days. At least 18 persons have been rushed to the District Head Quarter Hospital and given rabies injections after being attacked by the animal.
The dog, believed to have gone mad, has been attacking residents at different lanes of the town. The fear of dog attack has sent a shock wave among locals. People are scared to go out. Women and children have been soft targets of the canine in its extra aggressive mood, locals said.
The apprehension of being attacked by the dog has been so severe that children are scared to go to school, or play in the open. The fear is no less for the grownups. They too prefer to stay inside their houses and are hesitant not to move out unless there is an real emergency, sources said.
Office-goers, daily wage workers, hawkers are taking extra caution to keep the dog at bay. Upset and unable to find a way out, the denizens have appealed the civic authorities to catch the animal as soon as possible and bring an end to the unwarranted mad dog scare in the town, added sources.