STRAY DOG MENACE: Five bitten daily in Panchkula, yet zero sterilisation in 4 months

Sanjay Bumbroo

Panchkula, February 21

Despite four to five dog bite cases being reported daily in Panchkula city, not a single stray canine has been sterilised for the past four months. Reason: The contract of the NGO tasked with the job lapsed in October, 2022.

Amend Act to allow relocation

There is need to amend Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. Number of dogs is much higher. It will allow relocation of animals. — RP Malhotra, president, Federation of Residents Association

Bound by norms; adopt animals

Provisions of Act only allow us to carry out sterilisation. People can adopt stray dogs. This will help address the problem to some extent. — A senior MC official

According to information, there are around 4,000 feral dogs in areas falling under the Panchkula Municipal Corporation. The Emergency wing of the General Hospital, Sector 6, receives an average of five dog bite cases every day. As per rough estimates, the city saw 5,655 dog bite cases in 2022, against 6,016 and 5,692 in 2021 and 2020, respectively.

Dr Umesh Modi, nodal officer for rabies, says there was a spurt in cases in the first six months of 2022, but numbers declined thereafter. An average of five cases are being reported every day in the city, he says.

The MC, however, says it has allotted the tender for sterilisation to NGO Bezuban, owned by Shaurya Gilhotra, and the work will resume in March. Councillor Suneet Singla, chairman of the Dog Sterilisation Committee, says the work order will be issued in a day or two. The MC will pay the NGO Rs 1,500 per sterilisation against Rs 1,150 being given earlier, he says.

However, RP Malhotra, president, Federation of Residents Association, says sterilisation will not be of much help and that there is a need to amend the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. He says the number of dogs in the city is much higher than the MC’s figures. An amendment to the Act will allow the animals to be relocated, which may address the problem, he says.

Similarly, SK Nayar, president, Citizens’ Welfare Association, says: “Sterilisation is no solution to curb cases of dog bite. MC officials will have to devise a new strategy to bring about changes on the ground.”

Experts also say sterilisation is not a solution to the problem and is only potent in controlling the birth rate. Moreover, sterilised dogs tend to get more aggressive.

However, senior MC officials say the provisions of the Act only allow them to carry out sterilisation. “People can come forward and adopt a dog. This will help address the problem to some extent,” says an official.

The Panchkula MC had planned to construct a kennel at Sukhdarshanpur village with a capacity of 1,000 dogs. Besides accommodating stray animals, it would have served as a rehabilitation centre offering multiple facilities.

The MC had to shelve the project after the Animal Welfare Board of India set the precondition of releasing the animals in their original locality after sterilisation.

Tender allotted: MC

• MC says it has allotted tender for sterilising stray dogs to NGO Bezuban and work will resume in March; work order will be issued in a day or two
• It will pay NGO Rs 1,500 per sterilisation against Rs 1,150 being given earlier, says councillor Suneet Singla, chairman, Dog Sterilisation Committee