Taking a serious note of the threat posed by canines to public life, the authorities have expedited steps to bring the proliferation of stray dogs under control.
Addressing a meeting of local body representatives in this regard recently, District Collector V. Vigneswari said the objective was to put an end to stray dog menace by next March. “After vaccinating and sterilizing all stray dogs, they will be given special training to live in harmony with humans. At the same time, more Animal Birth Control centres will be opened so as to carry out at least 250 sterilization surgeries on a daily basis,” she said.
She added that stray dogs should not be treated with hostility, but be trained to live in harmony with society.
Plans are also afoot to launch innovative schemes for training and rehabilitating the stray dogs. A pool of volunteers consisting of school and college students will be constituted for raising awareness on the need to treat stray dogs with compassion.
The lone ABC unit currently operational in the district at Kodimatha has helped in regulating the proliferation of stary dogs within the Kottayam municipality and adjoining villages. The authorities have now embarked on a plan to expand the ABC programme across the district by opening units in all block panchayats.
The District Collector, meanwhile, has directed the local bodies to submit innovative projects towards controlling the stray dogs before July 31.
District panchayat president K.V. Bindu , who presided over the meeting, requested the block panchayats to complete construction of ABC units within six months. The project can be implemented successfully only if the works across all block panchayats progressed simultaneously, she said.
