Feral dogs have killed six children and injured seven since May 1 in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur district, prompting police to deploy extra forces, the Hindustan Times reported on Monday. Police will also use drones and night-vision devices from Monday night to trap the dogs.

“We have formed multiple police teams and equipped them with drones to cover larger areas, in a bid to trap the feral dogs,” Director General of Police OP Singh said. “Night vision devices will also be used for patrolling during the night.”

A 10-year-old boy was killed and one child was injured in separate incidents on Saturday. This was a day after dogs killed two children and wounded as many. The dogs had mauled three children to death in Khairabad area on May 1.

The fear among residents has led to a drop in attendance at schools, and people now go to the fields with rods and axes, PTI reported. The district administration had sent a dog-catching team from Mathura after the incident on May 1.

“Since November 2017, twelve children have fallen prey to dogs while six have been injured,” District Magistrate Sheetal Verma told PTI. Residents, however, claim that the toll is almost 17, all killed by around 100 dogs in a 20-km radius, News18 reported before the Saturday incidents.

Verma said the administration had sought help from the Lucknow Municipal Corporation to catch the dogs. Twenty-two dogs have been caught so far, she said.

Child Welfare Minister Rita Bahuguna Joshi visited the district on Saturday and announced financial aid to affected families. She said the government would provide community health centres in the area adequate vaccines and medicines.

Experts believe shortage of food after the crackdown on illegal abattoirs may be a reason for the aggression among dogs, according to PTI. “Earlier when the abattoirs were operational, the dogs used to get food in form of leftovers,” said RK Singh, the director of Indian Veterinary Research Institute. “But, with the closure of the abattoirs, there was a shortage of food for the dogs.”