New animal birth-control centre in Ghaziabad stuck on file

A survey conducted by an NGO in 2020 estimates the stray dog population in Ghaziabad at 48,000 and according to corporation officials, they have so far sterilised about 23,360 strays across the city

The Ghaziabad municipal corporation has been told by the state government to revise the cost estimate of the new animal birth-control (ABC) centre so as to get the project approved in the coming months. The officials said the new centre, along with the existing ABC, will boost sterilisation of stray dogs across the five corporation zones.

The officials said the new ABC will be able to sterilise about 70-80 stray dogs a day while the existing ABC, near Nandgram, can only handle about 30 sterilisations per day. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

A survey conducted by an NGO in 2020 estimates the stray dog population in Ghaziabad at 48,000 and according to corporation officials, they have so far sterilised about 23,360 strays across the city.

“The new ABC is proposed to come up near New Bus Adda. We sent a project report with a cost estimate of about ₹1.66 crore and the state officials have now asked us to revise the cost, with the inclusion of some additional items, to ₹1.86 crore. We will soon revise the project report accordingly and submit it for approval. It is likely that the approval will come in the coming months,” said Dr Anuj Singh, corporation’s chief veterinary and social welfare officer.

The officials said the new ABC will be able to sterilise about 70-80 stray dogs a day while the existing ABC, near Nandgram, can only handle about 30 sterilisations per day.

“Once the new ABC is up and running, our daily sterilisation will be about 100-110 a day. This will overcome the backlog. We will also hire agencies for bringing strays to the ABCs for sterilisation and then dropping them back at the same spot from where they were picked up once they have healed. The corporation pays ₹750 to the ABC operators for sterilisation of a stray dog. The overall cost per dog comes to about ₹1,000,” Dr Singh said.

The sterilisation drive has been cited by both animal and human rights activists as the humane way to control stray dog populations and also decrease incidents of dog bites.

In a recent incident, a 12-year-old girl suffered severe injuries after being attacked by a pack of strays at a high-rise in Raj Nagar Extension.

“The sterilisation process is already lagging and it must be stepped up across the city. There are frequent incidents of stray dog attacks, while there are incidents of people trying to harm these strays as well. Pet owners must also come forward to get their pets registered,” said Vikrant Sharma, a lawyer.

According to municipal estimates, there are about 20,000 pets dogs in the city but only about 5,200 have been registered with the corporation so far.