THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In an effort to tackle the capital’s stray dog crisis and implement the Supreme Court directions related to the issue, the city corporation has decided to invite Expressions of Interest (EoI) to set up dog shelters in the city.
The decision was taken in a high-level meeting chaired by Mayor V V Rajesh on Saturday to finalise shelter and care facilities for stray dogs within city limits.
The civic body is planning to relocate nearly 3,000 stray dogs from sensitive and high-footfall public spaces such as schools, railway stations, bus depots and government establishments, in compliance with the Supreme Court directive.
Setting up dog shelters was one of the key promises of the BJP-led council.The plan is to invite proposals from private parties and NGOs who are willing to set up and operate shelters for stray dogs as per the norms mandated by the State Animal Welfare Board.
The meeting was attended by officials from the State Animal Welfare Board, animal husbandry department, the corporation’s health wing and representatives of various animal welfare groups. A senior official of the city corporation said that four parties, including NGOs, expressed interest in setting up shelters.
However, the project is going to cost dearly for the city corporation as the civic body will have to shell out a minimum of Rs 100 per dog for those running the facility. The civic body will have to spend around Rs 90 lakh per month for sheltering 3,000 dogs.
“We haven’t fixed the rates yet. The EoI will be floated immediately. Two parties who attended the meeting were willing to set up shelters. We have asked all of them to submit proposals and take part in the EoI. A minimum of Rs 100 will have to be spent per dog by the civic body,” the official told TNIE.
An official of the city corporation said that the shelters must meet all standards mandated by the Animal Welfare Board of India, including adequate infrastructure, medical care arrangements and vaccination protocols.