The Supreme Court today restrained vigilante groups in Kerala from imparting training to children and distributing airguns to the people at a subsidised rate to kill stray dogs and publically propagate that there was a "war" against canines in the state.

A bench of Justices Dipak Misra and Amitava Roy said it failed to understand as to how such groups could be formed to eliminate stray dogs when there is a law to deal with the issue.

"In view of the aforesaid submission of the counsel for the state, we restrain such organisations to impart training to the children or to distribute subsidised airguns for people to kill stray dogs or to publically propagate that there is war against the stray dogs or strangulate the stray dogs or for that matter offer prizes or incentives to those who kill the stray dogs. Needless to say, our directions are not exhaustive but illustrative," the bench said.