Mumbai’s civic body, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is to hire seven vans along with skilled dog catchers to curb the rising population of strays in the city.
As per reports, the BMC is to also implement an anti-rabies vaccination scheme. Rabies is a deadly virus that is usually transmitted through an animal bite, for example, from stray dogs. The symptoms for the disease include fever, headache, excess salivation, muscle spasms, paralysis and mental confusion. Once the symptoms appear, it can almost always be fatal.
Meanwhile, the civic body has stated that as a result of inadequate staff and resources, the dog sterilization project and vaccination schemes for rabies have been hit hard. Moreover, as per reports, there are only four dog catchers in the entire city.
According to the BMC census back in 2014, there were 95,174 dogs across Mumbai. Out of the 95,174 dogs, 25,935 dogs were not sterilized. Of the un-sterilized ones, 14,674 were male and 11,261 were female. Dog sterilization or neutering is the most common method for animal sterilization. Humane societies, animal shelters, and rescue groups usually urge pet owners to have their pets neutered to prevent the births of unwanted litters, which contribute to the overpopulation of unwanted animals.
Moreover, in a bid to ramp up the sterilization of stray dogs, according to the proposal sent to the Standing Committee for approval, the civic body administration has recommended M/S Aarti Corporation, which is touted to provide seven vehicles, each with four expert personnel at the cost of ₹2,37,61,920, with catching and releasing per dog costing ₹680.