Meet the ‘paw squad’ of Kempegowda International Airport  

A lesser-known aspect about the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) is a canine shelter for strays which is located inside the vast 4,009-acre airport campus.

A lesser-known aspect about the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) is a canine shelter for strays which is located inside the vast 4,009-acre airport campus.

KIA, the third busiest airport in the country, is surrounded by villages and due to this proximity, many stray dogs enter the airport premises in search of food. It is also not uncommon to spot strays near outside the terminal premises which houses a large number of food and beverage outlets.

In order to address this issue, the Bangalore International Airport Ltd. (BIAL), operator of the airport, has set up a dog shelter.

“The airport is surrounded by villages that come under the jurisdiction of Bengaluru urban and rural districts. BIAL being a proactive organisation discharges certain responsibilities as required under the concession agreement and as permitted under Rules, Regulations and Laws,” said an BIAL spokesperson.

The dog shelter on the airport premises named “BLR Paw Squad” is operated by an approved NGO and is used primarily for the handling of animal welfare like the vaccination and sterilisation of stray dogs.

“Passenger and public safety are of utmost importance to us, so all dogs on the airport premises are fully vaccinated, and their medical and identity records are maintained in compliance with government guidelines. In this respect, local government agencies and our partner NGO, which is primarily focused on the handling of animal welfare, are engaged and consulted for preparing and implementing joint programmes,” the spokesperson added.

An airport official said that the dogs are not kept permanently at the shelters and that after sterlisation and rehabilitation is done, they are left to go.