Facility to treat injured, ailing stray dogs proposed

 Bangalore will soon get a first-of-its-kind centre in the heart of the City to treat injured and ailing stray dogs.

Dr Parvez Ahmed Peeran, Joint Director, Animal Husbandry, BBMP, whose brainchild the project is, told Deccan Herald that there was no medical facility in the City for treating stray dogs.

“Hence, a decision has been taken to open a centre wherein an animal welfare organisation (AWO) would be roped in and grants given to it by the civic body under a public-private partnership model. I have spoken about this to the Palike Standing Committee on Public Health and they have given the green signal for the project.
However, it will take time to implement it, as the proposal is still in a nascent stage,” Peeran said.

Free treatment

Apart from stray dogs, other injured dogs will also be treated free of cost. The Animal Husbandry Department said it would float tenders and select an AWO that quoted the lowest rate.

Presently, there are no BBMP veterinary centres or stray dog treatment centres in the City, said the Palike sources. However, the staff working under the BBMP's stray dog sterilisation (ABC-Animal Birth Control) programme sometimes attend to injured stray dogs within the Palike limits.

Peeran said that since the BBMP was cash-strapped, an already existing structure located in the centre of the City would be taken over and leased out to an animal welfare organisation.

He said such a step would help the BBMP save money.

No initiative earlier

Welcoming the move, B C Ramakrishna, president, Karuna Animal Welfare Association, said: “If it’s implemented, then it is good. However, a few years back, our association had written to the Palike stressing the need to open stray dog treatment centres in the City. But no initiative was taken in this regard. It is the responsibility of the civic agency to take care of ailing stray dogs and rehabilitate them.”

Meanwhile, chairperson of Palike Standing Committee for Public Health, Shashirekha Jayaram, said the proposal would be discussed with the committee and approved later.