Spine chilling videos of stray dogs with bodies of newborn babies in Madhya Pradesh have been going viral in the past week. The presence of strays in and around the hospitals has become a topic of intense debate in the state, with officials and NGOs emphasising the need for a sustained campaign to control the canine population.
Two videos in the last five days showing stray dogs with the bodies of newborn babies and their menacing presence in and around hospitals has become a topic of intense debate in Madhya Pradesh, with officials and NGOs emphasising the need for a sustained campaign to control the canine population.
Some even blamed it on the success of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, which they claimed had reduced availability of food in the open for strays. The state, with a population of 7.26 crore as per the 2011 Census or at least nine crore now, may be home to 47.36 lakh canines, which makes it a man to dog ratio of 19:1, a government veterinarian official told PTI on Monday.
Dead newborn in jaws of a stray spotted in Rewa
While MP Urban Development Department Principal Secretary Sanjay Shukla said his department does not have official figures of the number of strays, he acknowledged that measures were being taken to limit their population.
On March 11, a stray dog was seen holding a dead newborn in its jaws in a congested area of Rewa in the vicinity of a hospital, prompting the police to start a probe. The video was shot near Kabaddi Mohalla at Jaystambh Chowk under Civil Lines police station limits.
This was the third incident in Rewa in the last one-and-a-half months in which a newborn baby was found dumped, police said. Animal Welfare Board of India member Ram Krishan Raghuvanshi said the number of stray canines in Bhopal was around 85,000, while it was one lakh in Indore, the country's cleanest city.
"Stray dogs are getting furious due to lack of food. The Swachh Bharat Mission and the ensuing cleanliness may have caused a shortage of food in garbage dumps. Our work is to advise and look into complaints. The state implements the animal birth control guidelines. We are taking serious note of the dog attacks on children," he said.
"The state has just 12 to 13 NGOs to carry out animal birth control programmes. Even after 100 per cent sterilisations of canines in MP, it will take 8 to 9 years to check their population and make it manageable. Only 12 to 13 NGOs are recognised. They have to take affiliation from us. I have asked the government to bring out an advertisement for forming own NGOs and vet teams," Raghuvanshi added.
He said animal centres can be formed by civic bodies with the involvement of people working for stray animals or feeding them.
"The Animal Birth Control (dog) Rules 2023 require strays to be caught, vaccinated, neutered, and released back to the spot from where they were picked up. After sterilisation and vaccination, the stray animals are marked," said senior vet with Bhopal Municipal Corporation Dr SK Shrivastava.
However, the rules have no provision to lock up stray dogs in a shelter room, another official said, adding the BMC's budget for welfare of stray animals is just Rs 2.5 crore annually, which includes sterilisation drive costs.
(With PTI inputs)