The Hindu 05.04.2010
Corporation to broad-base ABC programme
Special Correspondent
| Move to equip veterinary hospitals in zonal areas |
Funds allocated for vet hospitals at Nemom and Attipra with facilities for sterilisation of animals
Plan to set up an incinerator to cremate rabid dogs that are euthanised
Thiruvananthapuram: The City Corporation is preparing to broad-base the Animal Birth Control (ABC) programme for sterilisation of stray dogs, in anticipation of the leap in the number of animals to follow the merger of five suburban panchayats with the city.
Chairman of the standing committee on health G.R. Anil said the current budget of the Corporation had earmarked funds to equip two more veterinary hospitals in the Nemom and Attipra areas with facilities for sterilisation of animals.
About 200 to 250 stray dogs are neutered every month at the Corporation’s veterinary hospitals at Pettah and Thiruvallam and the District Veterinary Centre at the PMG junction.
“We also have plans to set up an incinerator to cremate rabid dogs that are euthanised,” Mr. Anil said.
Sources in the Animal Husbandry Department said the Corporation would have a tough time dealing with the stray dog population in the new wards to be annexed from the Kazhakuttam, Kudappanakunnu, Vattiyoorkavu, Sreekaryam and Vizhinjam panchayats that are to be merged with the city soon.
“The menace is especially high in the Kazhakuttam and Kudappanakunnu panchayats,” they said.
Ombudsman order
Government officials admitted that facilities for sterilising stray dogs were virtually nonexistent in local bodies in the State, except for the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation.
Last September, Ombudsman for Local Self-Government Institutions M.R. Hariharan Nair had issued directions to the government to equip all local bodies with the means to curb the stray dog menace.
The order called for setting up dog pounds, purchase of dog vans and surgical equipment and establishment of incinerators. It also stressed the need for a separate wing of veterinary doctors for the ABC programme and a monitoring committee to review its progress. “Local bodies require the financial and administrative assistance of the State government to implement the ABC programme successfully and the government should take immediate steps for this,” it said.
However, none of the local bodies in the district have made budgetary allocation for the proposals in the latest budget.
Augmenting facilities
Apart from the surgeons at the nine veterinary institutions in the city, the Corporation has two veterinary doctors deputed from the Animal Husbandry Department on working arrangement to carry out the sterilization programme.
Dr. Gopakumar, Veterinary Surgeon at the Corporation, said the merger of the suburban panchayats with the city would necessitate an extension of the veterinary facilities to handle the explosion in the number of stray dogs.
“The existing vet hospitals in the panchayats can be effectively utilised for the programme with the minimum augmentation of facilities,” he said.
The Corporation’s veterinary team mostly uses the conventional method of surgery to neuter the animals though it is equipped with laparoscopic equipment purchased at a cost of Rs.20 lakh. “Keyhole surgery is more sophisticated but time-consuming. The conventional method is preferred for its ease and saving on time,” Dr. Gopakumar said.
Need for database
The absence of a database on the number of stray dogs is a major factor that hinders planning for the ABC programme. The number of trained animal handlers has also come down to nine from the original 25.
The ABC programme primarily focuses on sterilisation of female dogs which dominate the stray population. On an average, a female gives birth to eight pups in a single delivery. At two deliveries a year, it works out to an annual accretion of 16 pups.
Corporation sources said the practice of discarding female pups delivered by domestic pet dogs adds to the female number of the stray dog population.
The recent court ban on killing stray dogs has forced the government to focus attention on equipping local bodies with infrastructure and manpower for the ABC programme.
