Residents across the city from Ganapathy to Kuniamuthur are aghast at the way the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation is addressing the stray dog menace. The Corporation is supposed to carry out sustained animal birth control operations so that canine population comes down gradually over the years.
But that does not appear to be the case.
A city resident from Chinnavedampatti complained of stray dog menace in the area saying that students of colleges in the area were unable to either walk or ride motorcycles because of stray dogs.
A few other residents have also complained that though they have raised the issue with the Corporation more than a year ago, the civic body appears to have done very little.
Corporation sources said that the civic body had engaged two agencies - Humane Animal Society (HAS) and People For Animals Unit II to address the stray dog menace - the agencies would perform animal birth control operations on dogs, administer rabies vaccine and also attend to emergencies, if any.
The Corporation has assigned the HAS for 20 wards in West Zone and the PFA Unit II 80 wards covering the remaining four zones.
Since 2013-14, the two agencies had performed over 26,000 operations, for which the Corporation had reimbursed the expenses as per State Government guidelines. It at present paid them ₹444 a dog for the animal birth control operation.
But enough was not being done, alleged the Humane Animal Society.
Citing instances of rabies in dogs, the organisation alleged that of late, very little animal birth control and anti-rabies drive was taking place in the city.
Clarifying that it was not about which organisation had more jurisdiction, the HAS said that in the interest of the public and stray dogs, the Corporation should look into the issue, find the real reason why cases were being reported from the areas it had mentioned and address those issues.
The Corporation sources said that the PFA Unit II had been having some trouble after it closed the centre it provided in Ukkdam for the animal birth control operation following opposition from the residents of the area. The civic body was yet to provide an alternative centre and the proposed centre in Vellalore did not take off.
Efforts to reach the PFA Unit II through repeated calls and messages failed.
Senior health wing officials promised to look into the issue and added that the civic body had, however instructed both the agencies to work without geographical limitations during emergencies.