Days after the Supreme Court directed relocation of stray dogs from residential areas in Delhi-NCR to shelters, Mayor Raja Iqbal Singh met with animal lovers on Wednesday, assuring them that the process will be humane and in a phased manner.

In cities across the country, the feral animals are both loved and feared. The judges are forging into intensely emotional territory by going after the ones in the capital.

India’s top court has ordered authorities in New Delhi to start removing all stray dogs from its streets and to sterilize and relocate them to shelters permanently.