To implement SC order, Noida & Ghaziabad need proper stray dog count, faster sterilisation

Noida: Supreme Court on Friday modified its Aug 11 order and instructed authorities to sterilise and immunise stray dogs and release them back to the same locality, assuaging concerns about dogs being rounded up and herded into shelters and averting a logistical nightmare for corporations, which simply don't have space or resources to house a large number of strays.

SC's order has put the focus back on proper implementation of ABC (animal birth control) rules, lapses in which have led to stray dog numbers going up over the years. In the NCR cities, it also underlines the need for an immediate dog census so that ABC can be scientifically implemented.

Noida works with a ballpark estimate of 1 lakh stray dogs in the city. Gurgaon does the same, with an estimate of 50,000 dogs. Delhi's last dog census was in 2016 when it counted 1.89 lakh strays. Ghaziabad conducted a dog census in 2022 that put the population at 48,000.

"For the ABC programme to be effective, the authorities need to carry out a stray dog census immediately. Otherwise, we will never know if all dogs in the district have been sterilised or not and what is the target or goal of the programme," said Dr Krishna Pratap, a veterinary surgeon based in Sector 121, Noida.

Geeta Seshamani from NGO Friendicoes, which carries out ABC programmes in Noida and Ghaziabad, said the birth control programme will work better when there is a baseline number. "Not having a census does not affect the performance of the ABC programme. Having said that, if we have a figure of the total number of stray dogs, the govt will be able to efficiently categorise budgets according to the goal. That would be the intelligent way to go about it," she said.

The number of ABC centres also needs to be increased. At present, there's one each in Noida and Greater Noida. "In fact, govt veterinary hospitals should be turned into ABC centres so that more dogs can be sterilised," said Sanjay Mahapatra from NGO House of Stray Animals.

Talking about the challenges in implementing ABC, Surbhi Gupta from People for Animals (PFA) in Ghaziabad said that there was lack of coordination with dog feeders. "The Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation van, with just two dog catchers, cannot get hold of a dog without the intervention of local dog feeders. Stray dogs run away as soon as the dog-catching van comes. If dog feeders are involved in coordination, ABC programme implementation will be smoother," she said.

In the last 10 years, around 60,000 stray dogs have been sterilised and immunised by agencies working with Noida Authority, according to officials. But without a census, there isn't a yardstick to measure the effectiveness of the programme. "Around 750 sterilisations are carried out per month and Rs 1,600 is paid by Noida Authority per dog for sterilisation, post-operative care and anti-rabies vaccination," an official said. The pace clearly needs to pick up. "The number of NGOs involved will be doubled or tripled in the coming days," the official added.

One NGO is involved in ABC in Noida – Animal India Trust, which began working here in 2020 and has carried out around 40,000 sterilisation and immunisation procedures. Before that, another NGO worked for six years, covering around 20,000 dogs.

Noida has the right infrastructure for ABC to succeed. Dr YS Devi, a veterinarian with Animal India Trust, said, "In Noida, the ABC centre is located at Sector 94 Noida Authority animal shelter. The infrastructure required for a successful ABC programme requires a veterinary doctor, an operation theatre, a pre-operative room, a post-operative room, a segregation room for dogs suspected to be suffering from diseases like rabies or distemper, a kennel, and an incinerator for dogs that pass away due to communicable diseases. Noida Authority has provided these facilities."

In Greater Noida, GNIDA signed an MoU with HCL for the ABC programme last Sept. In Ghaziabad, between 2013 and 2025, about 30,000 dogs were sterilised, according to Dr Anuj Singh, chief veterinary officer. The city has two ABC centres and capacity to sterilise and vaccinate 50 dogs per day. "A third ABC centre is under construction in Siddharth Vihar and will be ready by Oct. Once all three are functional, the capacity to sterilise will increase to 120 in a day. This means that in one year, we will be able to sterilise 48,000 dogs in Ghaziabad," he said.



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