Dog bite cases on rise, Ludhiana MC yet to launch anti-rabies drive

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, August 24

Despite an average 600 dog bite cases reported every month at the Civil Hospital here, the Municipal Corporation is yet to launch the anti-rabies drive in the city.

Civid body’s senior veterinary officer Dr Harbans Dhalla, however, said the tenders for the project to make the city rabies-free would be floated in the next two-three months.

Sterilisation of stray dogs

According to an official of the MC’s veterinary branch, 51,000 stray dogs have been sterilised in the city till date. In a 2009 survey, 20,000 stray dogs had been identified. A sterlisation project was said to be launched in 2010, but it was never completed. The civic body then launched a new project in February 2015 and it is being carried out in different phases. However, the project was stalled multiple times in the past six years.

The process is underway to get the required approval for tenders, said Dr Dhalla.

Dog bite cases are reported from different parts of the city every day and two months ago, a girl had reportedly died of rabies.

Dr Dhalla said Mayor Balkar Singh Sandhu and MC Commissioner Pardeep Kumar Sabharwal had given a go ahead to the project and a resolution for the same was approved by the Finance & Contract Committee last month.

Under the project, all the dogs, including the pet ones, in the city will be administered the anti-rabies vaccine free of cost, said Dr Dhalla.

“The MC will be able to make the city rabies-free zone within the next 18-24 months after launching the project. Ludhiana will be the first rabies-free city in the country. The required vaccine will be purchased by the civic body in various phases,” he said.

“We will take help of the Animal Husbandry Department, NGOs and animal lovers for the project. Under the project, vaccines, syringes and examination gloves will be provided to all civil veterinary hospitals, mainly at Haibowal Dairy Complex, Barewal, and Polyclinic at Gill Road,” Dr Dhalla added.

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