As authorities fail to put an end to dog menace in Srinagar, city dwellers find it hard to venture out during morning and evening when the public movement is thin. The presence of dogs on every nook and corner of the city has left people up in arms against authorities for not being able to put an end to the menace.
In the last one year, Kashmir recorded 5,629 bite victims, mostly dog bites, reported to the Anti-Rabies Clinic at Srinagar’s Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) hospital, official figures reveal.
An official from ARC SMHS said from 1st April 2021 to 31st March 2022, as many as 5,629 bite cases were reported to ARC SMHS and most of them were from Srinagar.
Over the last few years, the population of stray dogs has increased manifold in Srinagar. The unchecked rise in the dog populace has become a nuisance. People find it difficult to venture outside their homes particularly during morning and evening hours.
“One can’t venture out alone due to the fear of dogs” people in other parts of the world will find it difficult to understand.
Although authorities say they are working hard to make the city smart, the ground reality is altogether different.
Irshad Hussain, Freelance Journalist
Authorities say they can’t kill the dogs because of animal rights issues. Fine enough, we understand that but they are obliged to find a mechanism through which people can get rid from dog menace. We can’t turn a blind eye to the burning issue.
Afeefa Anees, Homemaker
Every year, thousands of people fall prey to the canine terror but authorities have been doing too little to curb the menace. It is sad to see so many young and old people getting bitten by stray dogs. For animal rights activists, human lives aren’t as important as animal lives.
Atif Ahmad, Government Employee
Dogs are seasonal breeders and they mate twice a year. They give birth to sixteen puppies a year, most of them survive. The availability of non-vegetarian food is the main reason for their breeding. Garbage dumps on the roadsides provide them with more than enough food.
We have to abide by the Law, so we cannot kill stray dogs.
To reduce the dog population, we have been carrying out the dog sterilization programme for the last many years.
The sterilization of dogs is being done at Shuhama Sterilization centre and around five to six surgeries are being performed daily on a daily basis.
Another dog sterilization centre is being made operational at Tengpora Byepass and work is nearing completion.
Around 60 kennels are being constructed. The work will be completed in around two weeks. Once the centre is made operational, we will be able to perform more sterilizations. Once the dog sterilization programme is done for the next six to seven years, the dog populace will stabilize.
Dr Tawheed Ahmed Veterinary Officer, Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC)
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