Carcasses of 16 puppies were found in plastic bags in front of a hostel for nurses and nursing students at the state-run Nil Ratan Sircar Medical College and Hospital in the city, leading to protests by animal lovers and locals.
According to officials, the carcasses were sighted on Sunday and were sent for post mortem at the district veterinary hospital at Barasat in North 24-Parganas district, with the preliminary report stating that the puppies were beaten to death.
An adult dog, which was found in a critical condition nearby was taken away for treatment by an animal lover.
Inmates of the hostel saw the plastic bags containing the dead puppies on Sunday and drew the attention of the hospital authorities, who in turn informed the police.
The hospital authorities also ordered an internal inquiry on Monday, sources said.
An FIR was lodged with the Entally police station in connection with the incident but there has been no arrest as yet, the police said.
Animal lovers from different NGOs held a demonstration on Monday against the incident, raising questions of cruelty to animals and demanded punishment of the culprits.
They demanded that all CCTV footage in the hospital premises be scanned and the culprits identified.
The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) authorities described the death of 16 puppies at the same time "most unnatural".
KMC Deputy Mayor Atin Ghosh said that the civic body would also conduct an inquiry into the incident.
(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)