KOLLAM: Minister for Animal Husbandry J Chinchu Rani said the state government is committed to eradicating rabies from the state within the next five years. She further elaborated that the government plans to vaccinate 8.30 lakh pet dogs and 2.81 lakh strays within the next month. The minister was inaugurating the state-level Comprehensive Rabies Control Project at the Kollam Veterinary Centre on Saturday.
“We have set ambitious targets ahead of us and seek the cooperation of local bodies and veterinary officials to achieve them. In the initiate phase, our goal is to vaccinate 8.30 lakh pet dogs and 2.81 lakh strays across the state. The government is committed to ensuring that necessary vaccination doses are available at all veterinary hospitals.
We plan to prioritise the vaccination of stray dogs. After vaccination, each dog will be marked with blue or green ink indicating their vaccination status,” Chinchu Rani said.
Dr Shine Kumar, a chief veterinary officer in Kollam, highlighted challenges faced in the district, which has over 59,000 stray dogs, the highest count in Kerala. “Our immediate goal is to vaccinate 70 per cent of the stray dog population till the end of this month, thereby establishing herd immunity,” he said.
The function was presided over by district panchayat president P K Gopan. Dr Sindhu K, additional director of the animal husbandry department, Dr S Anil Kumar, district animal protection officer, and other officials were present.