May 22: The Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) has finally woken up to the stray dog menace in the city. It has taken up a Rs 30 lakh scheme for carrying out birth control and immunisation of stray dogs.
The first-of-its-kind scheme, prepared by GMC veterinary officer Makhan Chandra Barman, has proposed to sterilise and immunise 5,000 stray dogs in the municipal area within a year. The corporation has also formed a three-member dog-capturing squad to catch stray dogs for sterilisation. The members of the squad would be provided basic training in catching dogs.
“Equipment like dog-catching loop, canine mouth gag and gloves are being procured by the corporation,” a GMC official said. The sterilised dogs would be nursed up to a certain period before being released.
“The sterilisation and immunisation drive has been necessitated by the rapid increase in the city’s stray dog population. The stray dogs have become a threat to public health. Killing of dogs is not possible as it is prohibited by the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960,” he added.
The corporation has allocated Rs 15 lakh for sterilisation at the rate of Rs 300 per dog. Another Rs 2 lakh would be spent for immunisation at Rs 40 per dog.
Kamrup (metro) deputy commissioner Avinash Joshi today held a meeting with the officials of the GMC and veterinary department to discuss measures to reduce the stray dog menace in the city. The meeting was held at Joshi’s office chamber.
Joshi asked the representatives of both the agencies to take a co-ordinated approach to solve this problem. Barman, in his proposal, said they would engage the local community in the project.
The municipality may also tie up with NGOs like People for Animals (PFA) and Early Birds to conduct the birth control programmes for stray dogs. The NGOs have carried out sterilisation and immunisation of stray dogs in different parts of the city in the past. Last month the PFA had undertaken a vaccination drive of stray dogs to make Guwahati a rabies-free city by the end of this year.
