MADURAI: According to an RTI filed by TNIE, the population of stray dogs in the city is over 53,000 as of 2020. Animal activists allege the number is well above 1.5 lahks now, causing fear among residents, especially students. They said the city corporation is not doing enough to curb the stray dog menace.
According to the integrated grievances portal of the city corporation, 753 complaints of stray dog menace have been filed, of which 642 complaints have been addressed. G Balamurugan, a resident, said, "A minimum of 10 - 20 stray dogs can be seen in the streets of Madurai. The packs of dogs often chase people and attack them."
| Stray Dog population in Madurai city |
| YEAR | DOGS |
| 2012 | 47,573 dogs |
| 2020 | 53,826 dogs |
| Source: Madurai City corporation |
Officials from the city corporation said they are carrying out Animal Birth Control (ABC) operations for controlling the increasing population of stray dogs in the city. "Currently, ABC operations are being done in two locations in the city. Later, the dogs will be released in the same place, from where it was captured," they added.
Stating that the corporation has not done the street dog population census for the last two years, K Jayachandran, ward 62 councillor, said the population had crossed 50,000 a decade ago and is currently above 1.5 lahks.
| Number of Animal Birth Control operations done on stray dogs year-wise |
| YEAR | DOGS |
| 2016 | 4,039 |
| 2017 | 5,246 |
| 2018 | 2,173 |
| 2019 | 4,094 |
| 2020 | 2,571 |
| 2021 | 1,750 |
| 2022 | 2,056 |
| Source: Madurai city corporation |
"Instead of deputing an unqualified NGO, the city corporation should run a Vet centre with proper facilities and people who have compassion for the animals as per the recent circular of the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI). Instead of directly capturing street dogs, the city corporation can coordinate with dog feeders, which could be an effective way to carry out the ABC process and control the population. They will also know about the actual dog population in the city," he added.
Further, Jayachandran said the public, especially children should be made aware of how to treat the dogs and feed them. "Instead of leaving native breed puppies in the streets, the public can come forward to adopt it as their pet, which could prevent the increasing number of stray dogs," he opined.