Stray dog problem needs to be solved
One of the major challenges to be included in the list of public health problems in Kerala is the uncontrolled proliferation of stray dogs. The number of stray dogs surviving on food scraps thrown on the streets is increasing day by day. This leads to stray dogs attacking people walking alone at night and causing road accidents. The suggestion to immediately administer the rabies vaccine to such dogs has also failed to be implemented. The fact that more than eight lakh people have sought treatment in government hospitals in Kerala in the last six years due to stray dog bites reveals the serious nature of this problem. Most of the bitten people are children and women who are pedestrians. Most of them belong to ordinary families. Similarly, deaths due to rabies are also increasing. Local bodies and others have not been able to comprehensively deal with this problem. Apart from making announcements to control stray dogs, there are no effective practical measures.
Kerala has failed to even file an affidavit in the Supreme Court on the issue of stray dogs. The top court has directed the Chief Secretaries of the states, including Kerala, who have not filed such affidavits, to appear in person on November 3. Only West Bengal and Telangana have filed affidavits. The failure to file even an affidavit should be seen as evidence of how laxly the states are handling the stray dog issue.
The court has warned that there will be heavy fines and strict action if the Chief Secretaries do not appear to inform how effectively the ABC (Animal Birth Control) rules have been implemented. The warning was given by the bench of judges comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N.V. Anjari, who were hearing the suo motu case related to stray dogs.
The court mocked that the sitting can be shifted to an auditorium if the courtroom is full when the case is being considered on November 3rd. The court had made all the states parties to the case as it is a nationwide issue. The court was right to point out that this was an issue that affected tourism and that our country's image was being tarnished in front of foreign countries.
The Centre had recently amended the law to allow the states to formulate decisions and policies regarding the control of stray dogs. Although about twenty ABC centres are operating in Kerala, the fact is that their functioning is not efficient. The increasing problem of garbage all over the state is also an obstacle to controlling stray dogs. This is not a problem that can be solved by providing compensation to those who get bitten. The state government needs to clarify before the Supreme Court and the public what it is going to do to curb this problem through multifaceted means.