Around 1 Lakh stray dogs terrorize the City: Experts
Abrar A. Mattoo
SRINAGAR, July 13: Surprising as it may sound, Srinagar district accounts for nearly 70 per cent of the dog bites in the Kashmir division alone.
According to the data acquired by Kashmir Despatch from the anti-rabies clinic at SHMS hospital Srinagar, the summer capital is the worst hit in terms of dog menace amongst all the ten districts in the Kashmir region.
Amongst 45,015 cases reported at SHMS in the last eight years, 33,835 dog bites were recorded from the Srinagar district alone, many of which have resulted in grievous deaths. It’s to be noted here that only those cases are recorded which are deemed second and third-degree by the doctors, and therefore, require vaccine treatment. The first-degree dog bites are not recorded, and may also be huge in numbers.
According to experts, nearly one-lakh stray dogs terrorize the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, while there is only one canine-sterilization center in the whole region. Unfortunately, the Shumaha dog-sterilization center run by Srinagar Municipal Corporation has the meager capacity to perform only 15 surgeries a day, and as result, the negligible impact is created on the population control of the City’s stray dogs.
Though sterilization (or medically called vasectomy, where the vas deferens in dogs is cut to prevent further procreation) may seem to cruel an approach to deal with canine overpopulation, but given the terror and lives that stray dogs have ruined in Kashmir, the act remains as an only recourse in Kashmir.
Previously, in March 2021, when an eight-year boy was mauled to death by stray dogs in Pulwama, the efforts on stray dog management were ramped up. However, thus far, no tangible results have come to the fore.
“There are nearly one-lakh stray dogs roaming on the streets of Srinagar and our infrastructure is not adequate to manage them. There are certain steps that people should take, e.g. avoid piling roadside garbage, and roaming in areas where there are too many dogs. Similarly, the government should vaccinate all dog handlers and add two more sterilization centers in Srinagar. It may make a huge difference,” Dr. Hilal Rather, in-charge, anti-rabies clinic, SMHS hospital, Srinagar commented. Bite cases of Stray dogs. Rabid dogs, wild animals, etc.
Data Provided by Anti-Rabies Clinic Srinagar
Year: 2013-14 — total cases: 6041, Srinagar Cases: 3017, other districts: 3024
Year: 2014-15 — total cases: 4917, Srinagar Cases: 3038, other districts: 1879
Year: 2015-16 — total cases: 7324, Srinagar Cases: 5100, other districts: 2224
Year: 2016-17 — total cases: 6548, Srinagar Cases: 5120, other districts: 1428
Year: 2017-18 – Total Cases: 6802, Srinagar Cases: 5018, other district cases: 1788
Year: 2018-19 — Total Cases: 6399, Srinagar Cases: 5399, other districts: 1,000
Year: 2019-20 — Total Cases: 6984, Srinagar Cases: 4403, other districts: 2581
Year: 2020 — Srinagar Cases: 2800,
Total Dog Bite Cases: 47,815, Total Srinagar Cases: 32,095, other districts: 13,920
Srinagar Percentage: 72% Approx.
