Lingering Stray Menace

(MENAFN- Kashmir Observer)
Representational Photo

The ongoing escalation in dog bite incidents across Kashmir is yet another grim reminder that the government has failed to check the dog population. Early this April, at least 44 dog bite cases were reported on a single from various districts, including Srinagar, Kupwara, Pulwama, and Narbal. Downtown Srinagar was the most affected, with over 20 people, including women and children, reportedly attacked by a rabid dog in the congested localities of Sakidafar and Nowpora. This may also be because the Srinagar cases are reported more than those from the other parts of the Valley.

So, the issue is no longer a minor public nuisance. The rising dog bites, together with growing canine population, are a serious public health concern demanding immediate government intervention.

The data speaks for itself: Jammu and Kashmir recorded over 51,000 dog bite cases in 2024, up from around 34,000 the previous year, and more than double the 22,000 reported in 2022. The menace seems to have only further grown this year. with 4,824 cases reported in January.. In Ladakh too, the numbers have nearly doubled since 2022. Thankfully, no rabies-related deaths have been reported in recent years, but there is every possibility that rising dog bites may lead to fatalities.

Hence we urgently require a pro-active government to tackle the crisis. We already have the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Programme, which is meant to sterilise and vaccinate stray canines. But its erratic and often tardy implementation has made it ineffective in checking dog numbers. Although the new ABC Rules of 2023 and the National Rabies Control Programme have provided a policy platform, these have not translated into visible relief on the ground so far.

Srinagar Municipal Corporation has also failed to check the dog overpopulation, despite taking some steps in this direction. Early this year, the corporation had decided to open its third dog sterilization centre in Chatterhama to enhance the ongoing sterilization to contain canine population. Although the city already has limited capacity sterilization centres at Shuhama and Tengpora, we need more such facilities to address the problem at hand. Srinagar alone has an estimated 60,000 to 70,000 stray dogs warranting more sterilization facilities like Chatterhama.

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At the end of the day, authorities need to see whether the growing dog bites are a result of the lax implementation or it is because the scale of the problem has outgrown the existing means to address it. Canine overpopulation is a human-created problem and must be tackled with a humane but firm hand. Left unaddressed, it threatens not just the safety of people but also the credibility of institutions meant to protect them.

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