Vadodara (Gujarat), Jul 4 (IANS): In a shocking incident, an infant was attacked by a stray dog inside a house in Gujarat's Vadodara. In another incident on Monday, 15 people were bitten by a dog in a Surat area.

Five-month-old Janhvi Tailor was bitten by a street dog on Sunday evening while she was sleeping in the cradle at her residence. The dog had somehow sneaked inside the house.

The dog bit her on the head and face. She was rushed to the Gotri Government Hospital, where she got 15 stitches. Doctors from the hospital said her condition was stable.

Bharat Tailor, grandfather of the toddler, told the local media that on Sunday evening, he and his wife had gone out and when his daughter-in-law had gone to fetch water, a street dog entered their ground floor house and started biting his granddaughter. Her cries made the rush and she was horrified to see the dog licking blood on the floor.

In another incident in Surat, a street dog bit 15 people, including children on Monday morning in the Khwaja Dana area.

Of these, 13 were being treated in the government hospital and three were shifted to private hospital.

"It is a shocking incident, but unfortunately the ruling party and administration of the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) is taking stray cattle and dog menace lightly," said Ami Rawat, leader of the opposition in VMC.

She also alleged, "Crores of rupees have been wasted on sterilization of stray dogs, but the result is very poor and citizens become victims. The corporation should investigate the claims by the agency about the sterilization figure."

"The sterilization of street dogs is followed as per the Supreme Court guidelines. Annually 5,000 to 6,000 dogs are sterilized in Vadodara. In 2014 there were 40,000 street dogs and in 2022 the population is around 20,000. The corporation is trying its best to control the dog menace and make the city safe for citizens," said Dr Hitendra Patel, Chairman of VMC Standing Committee.