With an aim to eradicate rabies, the BBMP is planning to vaccinate at least 70% of the stray dogs with the Anti-Rabies Vaccine (ARV) in each ward. To achieve its goal, the civic body aims to vaccinate 800 dogs a day.
Launching the ARV vehicle on World Zoonoses Day, BBMP Chief Commissioner Gaurav Gupta said the vehicle will traverse every ward to vaccinate the strays.
“There haven’t been separate vehicles for these programmes. The eight vehicles will take the Animal Birth Control (ABC) and ARV programmes to every part of the city. Every vehicle will have a driver and two well-trained personnel to catch the dogs.” Gupta said.
BBMP officials revealed that there are about 3,09,000 stray dogs in all eight zones of Bengaluru. In 2020, the BBMP had vaccinated as many as 47,164 dogs.
“This year, we have decided to scale up the process with a target of 70%. The dedicated ARV vehicles have been instructed to operate at least 25 days in a month,” said Manjunath Shinde, Joint Director (Animal Husbandry).
Since January, the BBMP has vaccinated about 41,934 strays.
In its efforts to fight rabies, the BBMP has also set up a dedicated helpline —6364893322 — that receives complaints related to rabies-infected dogs.
“The helpline was launched in August 2020. We receive nearly 15 complaints every month,” Shinde said.
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