SMC sits on stray dog menace

Srinagar, July 1: In absence of adequate dog sterilization centers, Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) has failed to check growing stray dog menace in the summer capital. Inhabitants of various Srinagar areas said that presence of stray dogs at every nook and corner has made it difficult for them to venture out. The locals said that the risk of canine attacks is on rise given the growing population of dogs.

“Dozens of dogs are roaming around in our SafaKadal locality. A few days back I called SMC authorities and they even picked up some of the dogs. But after few days the menace is back. There should be a proper mechanism to check the menace. There are dogs roaming in the ity center and important places like health centers. We are unable to let our children out given the recent incident of dog bites,” said Bashir Ahmed of Safakadal.

   

Residents of various areas including Munwarabad, Khayam chowk, Khanyar, Nowhatta, Regal Chowk and Hawal.

Officials from the SMC said that the department is going to set up new sterilization centers for the canine population. Pertinent to mention that currently, the infrastructure that is available for sterilization is at minimum capacity. The SMC’s lone center at Shuhama is able to carry out sterilization of around 15 dogs per day which is negligible as compared to the population of dogs in Srinagar.

The officials at SMC said that after completion of the new project they will have three more dog sterilization facilities for Srinagar and the department will be able to carry out around 240 sterilization surgeries per day.

“We are also going to take other steps to counter the issue since only having a dog sterilization center won’t be effective. There is a need for better management of garbage. We will make sure that there will be a 100 percent collection of poultry waste and open garbage issue will also be addressed,” SMC, Veterinary officer, Dr. Javaid Ahmed said.

The officials said that the additional three sterilization center project is at the final stages. “We have cleared all the financial approvals and now we are awaiting the technical approval. As soon as these formalities are completed we will set the new sterilization center for dogs,” said officials.

The officials said that they are aiming to sterilize 75 percent of the dog population in Kashmir so that the population can be stabilized within five to six months. As per a report by the department of Community Medicines, Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar, around 58,869 persons were bitten by the dogs in the last ten years in Kashmir. In the last five years, 30,000 dog bite cases have been reported in Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital (SMHS) alone. While topping the list in 2020 more than 2,800 cases of dog bites were reported in Srinagar only.

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