Ghaziabad civic body hikes pet annual registration fee from ₹200 to ₹1,000

Officials said Ghaziabad city is currently lagging in terms of registrations as only about 5,925 pets have been registered with the municipal corporation so far

From April 1, the Ghaziabad municipal corporation will hike the annual fee for pet registration within its jurisdiction from the current ₹200 per pet to ₹1,000 per domestic pet, in accordance with a decision taken by the board, senior civic officials in the know of the matter said on Monday.

Pet parents have called for a reduction and said there should be exemptions from registrations in cases where people adopted abandoned pets during the pandemic and has been taking care of them since then. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

They will soon invite public objections and suggestions on the civic body’s proposed ‘dog policy.’

Officials said Ghaziabad city is currently lagging in terms of registrations as only about 5,925 pets have been registered with the municipal corporation so far.

“It is estimated that there are about 15,000 pets in the city. We are trying to expedite the registrations and urge pet owners to register before the annual registration fees is hiked to ₹1,000 from April 1. The hike is being effected in accordance with a decision taken by the board last week,” said Dr Anuj Singh, corporation’s chief veterinary and social welfare officer.

“By next week, we are also trying to issue a public notice inviting public objections and suggestions on our by rules and regulations under the ‘dog policy’, which aims to regulate the keeping of pets in the city,” he said.

Singh added that in case a pet remains unregistered, its owner will have to pay a penalty of ₹5,000 per pet.

Earlier in September 2023, the board had approved the by-laws under its proposed ‘dog policy.’

According to civic officials, the by-laws included several features such as the registration of pets will be done on the basis of their anti-rabies vaccination- certificate and sterilisation certificate from a qualified veterinary doctor.

Under the police, the sterilisation can be taken up only after the pet attains the age of one year. Those applying for registrations will also be required to submit an affidavit stating that no public nuisance will be caused by their pet.

The board had also approved another provision which said that a maximum of two pets will be allowed in house/flat of 200 square yards while a maximum of four registrations will be allowed in flat/houses of up to 300 square yards.

The provisions also said that five or more than five pets will not be allowed in residential areas and such numbers would attract the provisions of an animal shelter.

Pet parents and animal rights activists have decried the move to hike the registration fee and the hike is too steep.

“The fee of ₹1,000 is high and should be reduced. There should be exemptions from registrations in cases where people adopted abandoned pets during the pandemic and has been taking care of them since then. We have prepared several objections against the proposed by-laws and will submit these to the corporation once they issue the public notice,” said Surbhi Rawat, president of People For Animal (PFA), Ghaziabad.

These provisions also include a prior proposal, cleared by the corporation board in October 2022, which banned three dog breeds -- Rottweiler, Dogo Argentino, and Pit Bull -- owing to their perceived aggressiveness, said officials.