Karti Chidambaram asks Chennai mayor to release white paper on stray dog control funds

CHENNAI: Slamming the city’s failure to rein in its ballooning stray dog population, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram has demanded that mayor Priya Rajan release a white paper on how the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has spent Rs 20 crore allocated over two consecutive state budgets for animal welfare and sterilization.

In a letter on Tuesday, Karti cited GCC’s own survey from September 2024 that put Chennai’s stray dog count at 1.81 lakh — triple the 58,000 recorded in 2018. He said only 27% of these dogs have been sterilized, leaving the rest to breed unchecked and fuel dog attacks. In some wards, sterilization rates are as low as 2%, he pointed out.

“GCC’s inaction has exacerbated the crisis leading to escalating safety concerns and public grievances,” he said.

He flagged Tamil Nadu’s sharp surge in dog bite cases — from 3.3 lakh in 2022 to 6.41 lakh in 2024 — the second highest in the country.

“Despite big allocations, there has been little to show on the ground,” Karti wrote, blaming local inaction and poor implementation.

Calling the situation a public health emergency, he urged the mayor to form an expert committee, focus sterilization efforts in high-density areas, launch public awareness drives, and work with NGOs.

He highlighted that 95% of stray dogs surveyed suffer from health issues — including wounds, lameness, and transmissible tumours — and warned that the crisis cannot be ignored any longer.