SMC fails to check stray dog menance in Srinagar

Srinagar, Jan 13: Failure of Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) to check the growing population of stray dogs is posing risk to people of the summer capital.

The presence of a large number of stray dogs hampers the movement of pedestrians. Stray dogs chase pedestrians, motorists posing risk to them.

Several Srinagarities took to social media platforms to highlight how stray dogs are on the prowl even “in the heart of Smart City.” On Sunday, a video went viral on social media which showed a man climbing a car stopper pole to escape a pack of dogs near iconic Ghanta Ghar in Srinagar’s commercial hub Lal Chowk.

“This is the situation in the heart of the City. SMC has blatantly failed to keep a check on the growing dog population in the so-called smart city,” a netizen wrote.

There has been a rise in dog bite cases in Kashmir, especially Srinagar. With an alarming average of 18 dog bite cases reported on an average per daily, stray dogs continue to pose a significant threat to pedestrians.

Official data reveals that Kashmir registers around 6,000 to 6,500 dog bite cases annually. This signified 18 cases of dog bites are reported daily, especially in Srinagar. The traders’ community of Srinagar said that stray dogs have been posing threat to them and customers.

Aijaz Shahdar, President of Kashmir Trade Alliance, said that the issue is inflicting fear among customers. ‘Several times, pedestrians, including shoppers, had a narrow escape. We have taken up the issue with authorities several times, and we hope that proper measures are taken in this regard,” Shahdar said.

Officials from SKUAST-Shuhama and Tengpora Dog sterilisation facilities said that the dog sterilisation process has been suspended at both centers for months due to cold weather.

“One reason is that surgeries are suspended due to cold, but in addition to that, we don’t have a PRC certificate, which is a Project Recognition Certificate by the Animal Welfare Board of India. Once we have that and temperatures are better, only then can we resume operations,” said an official, adding that sterilization surgeries at Shuhama have been suspended since September last year.

Another official said that the surgeries have also been suspended for the past few months at the Tengpora facility owing to subzero temperatures.

“There are animal welfare board guidelines that we cannot operate amid subzero temperatures. This is why the operations have been suspended since November at the Tengpora facility,” said another official.