Bhubaneswar: The city civic body has signed a tripartite agreement with the College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, OUAT, Worldwide Veterinary Service, and Mission Rabies India for vaccinating around 43,000 stray dogs in the state capital within two months.The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) move follows a Supreme Court warning that it would impose heavy compensation on states in cases where dog bites led to injury or death.
The BMC said 15 teams will take up on-site vaccination, each having the target to vaccinate 50 dogs a day.BMC officials said currently 5,000 dogs have been vaccinated against rabies. They were vaccinated during their quarantine period at the kennel. This was done in phases since the start of the ABC programme carried out by urban local bodies. No separate vaccination drive has been carried out for stray dogs so far.“The dogs will be caught using nets at places where they roam, administered the vaccine and then released. They will not be relocated to other places. This initiative aims to achieve a rabies-free city through mass anti-rabies vaccination of stray dogs, strengthening public health and animal welfare across Bhubaneswar,” said BMC mayor Sulochana Das.The aim of the MoU is to strengthen rabies prevention, surveillance, diagnostics, and response mechanisms through structured technical and scientific interventions.“Through the MoU, we will enhance institutional capacities of BMC through training, SOP development, and field operation. The mass anti-rabies vaccination will start in the first week of March and end in May,” said Dr Debi Prasad Kund, designated veterinarian in-charge of the ABC programme of the civic body.BMC officials said Mission Rabies India and Worldwide Veterinary Service will together act as the technical partner and strategic adviser in the field of surveillance, education, and mobile-based app development, along with substantial logistical support for the project. “Veterinary interns from OUAT will also be engaged in the special drive,” Kund added.Two days ago, BMC decided to bring guidelines to regulate stray dog feeding by identifying designated feeding points in consultation with the local corporators and resident welfare associations (RWAs). BMC senior officials said zonal deputy commissioners were asked to look for places that can be used as dog-feeding zones, considering the concentration of canine population and people’s convenience.
