E-Paper
Now, Chandigarh’s Sector 37 a ‘puppy-free’ zone, courtesy NGO
NGO, which is working across the Tricity to reduce the cases of dog bites, had already made Chandigarh Golf Club, Sector 2, 3, 4 and 5 and IISER, Mohali, ‘puppy-free zones’ by sterilising all the adult canines.
After making the northern sectors of Chandigarh a ‘puppy-free zone’, Peedu’s People, an NGO, has now once again worked with residents and the authorities to complete the project in the city’s Sector 37 in a bid to contain the population of stray dogs.
The NGO, which is working across the Tricity to solve the human-animal conflict and to reduce the cases of dog bites, had already made Chandigarh Golf Club, Sector 2, 3, 4 and 5 and IISER, Mohali, ‘puppy-free zones’ by sterilising all the adult canines.
Besides, the NGO is presently working to achieve the same in Sector 10, Chandigarh, and Phase 3B2 in Mohali.
District animal welfare officer Inder Sandhu, who runs the NGO and is heading the project, says: “The problem of dog bites can be solved by three things—100% vaccination and sterilisation of each and every dog in a sector or area; awareness in citizens and children about how to deal with stray animals and enforcement of all animal cruelty laws and city bylaws via the authorities. To make the area puppy-free, we first survey the stray dog population and then sterilise all adult canines. There is constant monitoring thereon to ensure that any other dog that enters the sector is also sterilised to reduce the population of stray dogs”.
“It took around six months for the NGO to complete the project in Sector 37. In all, there were 36 dogs and seven puppies in the sector and 43 surgeries were done. The project in this sector was funded by the Passey’s, who runs a software company in Mohali,” he added.
The NGO also gives special collars and ear markings to the spayed dogs and keeps a check on any new dogs coming to the area.
Arundhati, a member of the NGO, added, “Just in the past 6 months, the average dog bites per month in Sector 37 has dropped from 12.3 bites a month to 11.3 bites. We will continue to monitor the statistics and attend every dog bite in the area to help victims’’.
The NGO had started this project at the Chandigarh Golf Club in 2020 and worked in Sector 5 in 2021. However, the entire northernmost belt of the city was declared puppy-free in February this year.
‘Sterilisation helps but follow-ups necessary’
Col HS Chahal, president, Chandigarh Golf Club, said, “The dog sterilisation is helping but the NGO or civic authorities must do the follow-up of the area as dogs from other areas often enter the club. At least every six months, a survey should be conducted in the area just to confirm if there is any new dog in the area. Though we do not see new puppies in the area, we are still reporting cases of dog bites. Last week, two of our staff workers were badly bitten by dogs”.
Maheshinder Singh Sidhu, councillor for Sectors 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10, said, “After the NGO stepped in, no major dog bite case has been reported. But dogs are still aggressive in the area. However, the situation is much better than the sectors where sterilisation is not being done. At present, the project is going on in Sector 10, but last week, a terrible dog bite incident was reported in Sector 11 where the victim is still admitted to the hospital”. He added that the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation tries to help them in every possible way.
