Thane is going to the dogs! Alarming | 15,000 dog bites last year. Despite reminders, TMC fails to control dog population

Thane is going to the dogs!

Alarming | 15,000 dog bites last year. Despite reminders, TMC fails to control dog population

following news article by Arvind Walmiki @airwind05 was published by DNA on May 16, 2015 . Till date condition has not been improved.

Thane: By the end of 2021, human population and stray dogs will be at par, if proper measures are not taken on time. Thane’s alert resident Satyajit Shah, 51, has conducted a detailed survey on stray dogs in the city in close co-ordination with the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) for the last few years.

The figures of the last four years reveal that in 2011-12, the number of dog bite cases were approximately 11,000 compared to 15,000 in 2013-14. This year till April, 3,600 cases have been registered.

Shah has also written to the related officer regarding this, but despite several letters and reminders, no measures have been taken to control the dog population. Shah, an engineer, said, “Stray dogs should not be given food on the road, instead they should be adopted. They pose threat to commuters, especially to cyclist and two-wheeler riders, travelling in evening. They chase bikers and while in most cases the bikers escape from the dog bite, some get attacked.”

“Dog bites can cause rabies. In fact, stray dogs pose threat to the police too, who are patrolling the streets at odd hours. So, there is a need to vaccinate such stray dogs. The government should compensate victims of dog bite,” Shah added.

“Every bite is measured in PSI (pound per square inch). The human has 150 PSI whereas the dog bite has 556 PSI. Their teeth are so sharp that it takes few seconds to tear a person’s clothes and reach the flesh,” explained Shah.

Gaytri Mahale, a resident of Thane who travels to CST for work, said, “We are so scared of stray dogs that while alighting the station, we have to be careful one can find dogs in every corner of the station. Since the station sees a huge footfall, one has to stay alert and ensure they don’t step on the dog.”

“The authorities do not pay any heed to the problem. During night, we hear dog barking near our society that closing the window is also pointless. More than half of the stray dogs are not sterilised. The authority must look into the matter,” she added.

Last year in June, nine-year-old Shahid Naseem Sayyed, who was on his way to school along with his brothers around 6.45am, was attacked by around 10 dogs. The boy was hardly a few steps away from his Urdu medium school when the incident took place. Locals tried to save him, but by then the dogs are severely injured the boy. He was admitted to JJ hospital.

Another incident took place last week when a two-year-old was attacked by four to five dogs. Passersby rushed to help him, but the animal had injured the boy severely. He was rushed to a nearby hospital.

Dr Anand Hardikar from the Indian Medical Association, Maharashtra, said, “The police should inquire with those who feed stray dogs. According to the law, this is not allowed. Dog attacks leaves the residents scared and at times they start crying during the treatment. The vaccine which is given to the dogs lasts for six months, so there should be periodical check-up after every six months, which is not done.”

Published Date: May 16, 2015