VIJAYAWADA: Have you ever thought what the dog catching teams do after catching strays and where they will be shifted? These dogs are shifted to Animal Birth Control (ABC) sterilisation and vaccination centre at Excel waste energy power plant at Ajit Singh Nagar.
At the sterilisation centre, the animals caught by four dog catching teams, will be kept under observation. Later, they will be released at the same place from where they were picked up.
While the civic body claims that it has tamed dog menace, the ground reality tells a different story.
The efforts of the civic body in administering sterilisation and other vaccinations to reduce the population of stray dogs in the city have failed.
“The VMC officials claim that these dogs cannot give birth after sterilisation. But the stray dog population is on the rise in the city,” says Devaraj, a resident of Labbipet.
According to VMC officials, there are more than 16,000 street dogs in the city, of which only 7,000 have been sterilised. In the last few years, the population of strays has increased by 3,000.
Often, these animals create panic among residents, especially at night time.
“Thousands of street dogs are left unsterilised and they are freely roaming on the city lanes. Sometimes, they attack people who walk on the roads. In summer, these stray dogs go berserk and attack people on the roads,” said P Chandrasekhar, a resident of Krishna Lanka.
After one six-year-old boy was mauled to death by a pack of stray dogs in Bhavanipuram, the VMC planned to launch a massive sterilisation drive to neutralise around 3,500 stray dogs by the end of December, 2017. Unfortunately, the massive drive failed to achieve expected results as the civic body due to shortage of dog catchers.
VMC fails to control stray dog menace
People living in slum areas are more vulnerable to stray dog attacks
Also, the increase in stray dog population has led to the rise in number of road accidents involving two-wheelers
Veterinary assistant surgeon A Sridhar said about 5,600 dogs had been sterilised and released in their respective areas so far
According to VMC officials, the areas which have high stray dog population are Bhavanipuram, Kabela Centre, Ajit Singh Nagar, Vambay Colony, Krishna Lanka, Nunna, Auto Nagar, Milk Project, Kothapet and Governorpet
“At present, we have four teams working on sterilisation of dogs. The work is outsourced to Tirupati-based animal welfare organisation recognised by the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) Animal Care Land (ACL). They will use the infrastructure of VMC including shelters and dog catching vehicles,” said veterinary assistant surgeon (VAS) A Sridhar.
He further said that about 60 dogs are being sterilised per day at the ABC centres. After a dog is sterilised, the veterinaries will make a scar on the animal’s ear, denoting that it has been sterilised.
“There will be a V-Shaped notch for every sterilised dog. That’s how we identify the dogs and will bring to Animal Birth Control Centre,” the veterinary assistant surgeon added.
Meanwhile, people living in residential areas and colonies on the city outskirts are hesitant to come out of their homes as animals continue to be a nuisance in street corners, markets and public parks.
“The VMC officials should lay special emphasis on city outskirts and slums as several incidents of dog bite were reported in these areas,” complains Prameela, a resident of Rajarajeswari Pet.
The VMC is contemplating setting up a 24x7 anti-stray dog squad to prevent attacks on people. The civic body is spending Rs 750 to meet the expenditure of pre and post sterilisation of each dog.
Steps taken
Civic body set up a sterilisation centre at Ajit Singh Nagar in the city at a cost of J50 lakh
Earlier, VMC used
Jeeva Karunya Society at Bhavanipuram as animal birth control (ABC) centre to sterilise the street dogs
Street dogs are being served food including curd rice, sambar rice and milk
Four dog catching teams deployed in city
VMC is spending J750 to meet the expenditure of pre and post sterilisation of each dog
Animal Care Land (ACL) was given a target of sterilising and immunising 10,000 street dogs
ACL developed a mobile app named “ULB Dog Sterilisation in AP” and geotagged all sterilised dogs
VMC is contemplating setting up a 24x7 anti-stray dog squad to prevent attacks on people at night time