Stray query: Can Delhi match its bark with bite?

NEW DELHI: Delhi govt will microchip 10 lakh street dogs, regulate pet shops and launch a rabies action plan. These decisions were taken on Wednesday when the Delhi Animal Welfare Board met at Delhi Secretariat under the chairmanship of development minister Kapil Mishra.

As part of animal welfare measures following the Supreme Court's recent directive to state govts to come up with street dog policies, the board decided that around one million street dogs in the city would be microchipped over the next two years in collaboration with UNDP. Mishra said the initiative would strengthen rabies control and dog population management.

The board will also present a Delhi state action plan on rabies ahead of World Rabies Day, with emphasis on the prevention of dog bites and digitisation of vaccination. A dog census and monitoring system will be implemented for accurate data and planning.

The registration of pet shops in the city will also be made mandatory. A special monitoring committee will oversee enforcement. The minister said that all related rules about animal welfare would be implemented soon. He added that regional committees would be activated for monitoring and action at the local level.

Another important agenda of the meeting was related to administrative and financial matters. A proposal was put forward to transfer funds from the Delhi Advisory Board for Animal Welfare to the Delhi Animal Welfare Board. The meeting also agreed to set up a standing committee and other sub-committees, recruit new staff, and approve expenditure for the smooth functioning of the board's initiatives.

Mishra said govt was committed to providing adequate funds to ensure rapid progress in animal welfare."Our aim is to ensure that Delhi sets an example for the entire country in this field," he said, adding, "If financial assistance is required at any level, Delhi govt will provide it on priority."

The board will launch awareness programmes in school in collaboration with the education department, while an animal market monitoring committee will also be constituted.

Mishra said, "During the previous govt's tenure, the Animal Welfare Board did not meet for several years. Today, this meeting has been convened to address all pending issues of the Board. All problems related to animals in Delhi will be resolved at the earliest." Animal welfare committees will be formed at the district level, he added.

After having ordered that all street dogs should be rounded up and housed in shelters, the Supreme Court reversed its decision and said instead that dogs that were not rabid or aggressive shouldn't be confined to shelter but sterilised, immunised and released back in the places from where they were picked up.

The court also ordered a ban on public feeding of stray dogs and directed the creation of dedicated feeding spaces. It also said that no individual or organisation should obstruct municipal authorities from picking up dogs in accordance with the Animal Birth Control Rules.

The last dog survey conducted in 2016 and covering four administrative zones under the then South Municipal Corporation of Delhi had recorded 1,89,285 dogs. Delhi govt now estimates there are at least 10 lakh dogs in the city.

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