But, the dog menace is far from under control.

Census report  

According to a report by the Animal Welfare department of the Palike, the dog census in 2007 stood at 1.83 lakh stray dogs and 1.43 lakh pet dogs.

In comparsion to that, the number of sterilised dogs was 1.14 lakh.

The breeding ratio of dogs in the city is 1:6:12 (every dog has a breeding cycle twice a year and is capable of littering 6-8 puppies every time) and the sterilisation by the Palike stands at 1:1.

This effectively means, the 69,287 dogs that were not sterilised in the 2007 census, which have a 50:50 male-female ratio, bred six times since then.

Palike’s plans

The Palike has now increased the number of projects to handle the sterilisation programme from 12 to 20.

Animal welfare organisations Karuna and CUPA are currently handling two projects each and the Animal Rights Fund has five projects.

Six more agencies — two from Andhra Pradesh, three from Maharasthra and one from Karnataka — have shown interest in the scheme that has been put up before the Taxation and Finance Committee for approval.

According to Joint Director of Animal Welfare in the Palike Dr Parvez Ahmed Peeran, 90,000 surgeries can be conducted under the scheme if the proposal is accepted.

But the process would still require more than five years to control the population of dogs in the city.

“This is a process that has to be followed relentlessly by the Palike for five or more years to effectively control the dog population,” said BBMP Commissioner Siddiah said.