Stray dogs bite 150 people near Kalyan station

KDMC says teams comprising dog catchers, veterinary doctors and surgeons will visit all wards to identify rabid dogs and neuter and vaccinate them

Thane: Around 150 people were bitten by stray dogs near Kalyan railway station on Monday, according to staff at the civic-run Rukminibai Hospital, a day after at least 130 people, including an 11-year-old girl, were reportedly bitten in the city.

Staff at Rukminibai Hospital said around 150 more people sought treatment for dog bites on Monday.

The girl, who was bitten on Sunday, was initially in critical condition and was transferred to Sion Hospital in Mumbai. She is now out of danger, officials said.

Staff at Rukminibai Hospital said around 150 more people sought treatment for dog bites on Monday. The figure could not be independently verified.

Nitin Amlate, one of the victims, was heading towards Kalyan station to take a train to work when a stray dog bit him on the leg from behind and ran away. He said the dog then bit at least four more people who were walking ahead of him.

“I went to the nearby Rukminibai Hospital, where I saw four to five more dog-bite victims in the queue waiting for treatment. I was administered tetanus and rabies vaccines and was asked to return after two hours, after eating food, for another round of injections,” Amlate said.

Ram Ashok Patil, who had arrived in Kalyan from Varanasi on Monday morning and was planning to take a train to Belgaum, stepped out to have some food when he was bitten by a stray dog. He also rushed to Rukminibai Hospital, but claimed he had to wait for more than two hours for his case papers to be prepared.

Patil said he was eventually told that the hospital did not have the medicines or injections required to treat dog-bite injuries and that he would have to be admitted. “I am not a local resident, so I am going to Belgaum now [without treatment],” he said.

Aniket Kamble, a Kalyan resident, was returning home after getting off at the Kalyan station on Monday morning when he was bitten by a stray dog. The dog then ran away and reportedly bit three to four more people walking ahead of him, he said. Kamble also went to Rukminibai Hospital, where he had to spend at least three hours in a long queue to receive the required injections.

Umesh Borgaonkar, a Shiv Sena (UBT) councillor who was part of a team involved in searching for the stray dog that allegedly bit more than 130 people in the Khadakpada area on Sunday, including children as young as six, told HT, “We started searching for the dog at around 8 pm and found it near the Chikanghar police chowki, around one kilometre away from the location, at 1.45 am on Monday. It was caught with the help of a dog catcher whom we had requested to assist us.”

Borgaonkar said he was doubtful that a single dog could have bitten more than 100 people in one day. He suggested that a rabies-infected dog may have bitten other dogs, which then attacked people.

He also said that the Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) should have a dedicated cell to handle dog-bite cases. Such a cell should include at least one animal activist and have equipment that would allow dogs to be tranquilised from a safe distance and captured, he said.

The number of dog-bite cases reported on Sunday could not be independently verified. While doctors at Rukminibai Hospital said more than 130 people had arrived with dog-bite injuries on Sunday, a KDMC press release put the figure at 58.

On Monday, KDMC commissioner Abhinav Goel visited a dog shelter in Kalyan to inspect its preparedness and said the corporation has increased the workforce of its dog neutering and vaccination teams.

“From Wednesday, teams comprising dog catchers, veterinary doctors and surgeons will visit all the wards to identify rabid dogs and neuter and vaccinate them. We have appointed an NGO to manage the city’s dog population. At present, there may be around 80,000 dogs in the KDMC area. We are targeting the neutering and vaccination of at least 50 to 55 dogs daily,” Goel said.