(IN) Commonwealth Games: MCD to conduct first-ever dog census in Delhi

October 10, 2009

apital/255489/

MCD to conduct first-ever dog census in Capital

Express news service

Posted: Dec 29, 2007 at 0000 hrs IST

New Delhi, December 28 The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is planning the

first-ever stray dog census in the Capital. The move aims to curb the growing

and ‘menacing’ numbers of stray dogs.

The census will be conducted by Wildlife SOS over the next two months, said BJP

councillor and Standing Committee chairman Vijender Gupta following a meeting

held between MCD officials and animal activist Maneka Gandhi.

“We decided to get the survey done at a cost of Rs 5.47 lakh, ensuring more

efforts in the worse affected areas,” Gupta said.

While municipal estimates say there are at least 5 lakh stray dogs in the city,

the civic body has managed to vaccinate only around 80,000 over the last four

years. The civic body has nine city-based NGOs assisting it in carrying out the

sterilisation and vaccination programme.

Appreciating the civic body’s efforts, Maneka Gandhi said: “It is not the MCD’s

fault if our sterilisation programme hasn’t worked the way we wanted. We lack a

scientific approach to address the issue and Wildlife SOS has experts and

trained staff to conduct surveys in an organised and accurate fashion.”

Survey teams in different districts of the city will be sent at the same time,

say morning or evening, when dogs come out in search of food. “We plan to

conduct surveys in select and distinct areas, plot the dog density and then

calculate the overall dog population by using the results for similar areas,”

Gupta said.

“We have also formed a joint forum of NGOs to carry out sterilisation and

immunisation of stray dogs, particularly in east Delhi area. This programme will

be later launched in the other parts of the city. MCD has also identified two

abandoned municipal primary schools for carrying out sterilisation and

immunisation of stray dogs in east Delhi, keeping in view the forthcoming

Commonwealth Games,” he added.

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Thank you for your compassion !

With best regards,

Debasis Chakrabarti

Compassionate Crusaders Trust

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