VIJAYAWADA: Stray dog menace in the city has come to light as a dog attacked three schoolchildren in Bhavanipuram while they were returning from school on Monday evening. The incident has shocked citizens as it comes just days after street dogs mauled a four-year-old to death in Hyderabad.
Of the three kids, identified as Nazir, Chaitanya Kumar and Jessica, two are severely injured as the dog bit them on their neck, arms and limbs. One of the children’s mother was also present, but could not stop the attack.
An elderly person, too, tried to stop the dog by throwing an iron rod at it, but could not. Locals then rushed to the spot and shooed it away. The children were shifted to a hospital and were given an anti-rabies vaccine (ARV). “There was only one dog. It came attacked us from behind. My mother fell down while stopping the dog from biting us,” Jessice said.
Nazeer’s father, Sk Bashir said, “I have been calling the VMC (Vijayawada Municipal Corporation) staff for the past three days to complain about the strays. However, they recklessly asked me to send a text on a WhatsApp number. Meanwhile, the dogs attacked our children and injured them. Fortunately, their lives are not in danger. If the authorities do not take precautionary methods, incidents such as the Hyderabad one will repeat.”
Terming the rise in dog attacks concerning, Government General Hospital superintendent Dr B Sowbhagya Lakshmi said, “At least 20 to 30 new cases are being reported daily. Sufficient ARV injections are available at the GGH. In view of the rise in dog bites, we have deployed a nurse at the casualty ward for 24 hours,” she said.
According to a VMC survey, there were over 30,000 stray dogs in the civic body limits five years ago. The number is very likely to have risen now.
VMC chief Swapnil Dinakar Pundakar said, “We are performing 60 animal birth control surgeries on dogs daily and trying to do increase it to 100 a day. Steps are being taken to conduct a survey to identify the number of dogs in the corporation limits and take action accordingly. We are vaccinating 300 dogs a day and will complete the vaccination programme in three to four months. Additionally, we are planning to organise an awareness programme from next month on adoption and caring of stray dogs.”
As strays mostly survive on waste discarded from hotels and meat stalls, managements have been asked to dispose off the waste properly.
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