Goa, Aug. 22 -- The Supreme Court is set to announce its decision on whether stray dogs in the National Capital Region (NCR) will be relocated to shelters to ensure public safety, following a controversial earlier order that sparked nationwide debate.

The matter is being heard by a three-judge bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and NV Anjaria, who had reserved judgment earlier this week. On August 11, a separate bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan had directed authorities to remove stray dogs to shelters within eight weeks, citing rising dog bite incidents, cases of rabies, and even deaths.

The August 11 order mandated the creation of shelters for at least 5,000 dogs, staffed with personnel trained in vaccination a...