Not Much Being Done To Tame Stray Dogs In Patiala

In Patiala, the stray dog menace has taken the city by storm. There have been so many incidents reported of stray dogs biting people and the number of these incidents is increasing with every passing day. The Patiala Municipal Corporation has no succeeded in controlling the stray dog population. A dog pound is still far from happening anytime soon. It is becoming unsafe to travel by foot anywhere because you can never know when you might be bitten. Sterilization of these dogs is not being done at all to control the population. Also the anti- rabies vaccination given in the government hospitals is highly irregular.

The attitude of the municipal corporation has been indifferent and the dog population has gone up really high. Yogesh Malhotra, a junior assistant at the Government Dental College reported how he was attacked by a group of stray dogs near the Leela Bhavan and was bitten. The same day, four more dog bite incidents were reported in around the Leela Bhavan area. When Yogesh Malhotra went to the Rajindra Hospital to take the anit rabies injection, the vaccine was out of stock!

Mayor Amaninder Bajaj put the blame of the dog exodus on the villagers. He said that the villagers have scared the dogs away and thus they are taking refuge in the city. He also added that a dog pound is soon going to be built and it would be before the end of this year.

Kuldip Grewal a reired Colonel commented that too many dog biting incidents are reported every year. As not only the stray dogs, but also the pet dogs are left unattended on the streets. Even areas like the cantonment dogs threaten the wildlife of the region.

The anti rabies vaccine is mostly unavailable in Rajindra and other government hospitals and thus people have spend a lot of money to buy them elsewhere. Rajindra Hospital say they have not received any Anti rabies emergency in the recent years. Medical superintendent Dr Sharda they have placed an order for 5000 vaccines but are still awaiting the delivery.