Jaipur: Although state govt plans to issue a circular advising all urban local bodies (ULBs) to implement Animal Birth Control (ABC) programme following Supreme Court’s recent directives, the initiative has encountered obstacles before its rollout.Since the ABC programme has been irregular and predominantly limited to Jaipur, the state now faces a shortage of experts and trained volunteers to catch and vaccinate strays across Rajasthan. A senior official from the directorate of ULBs told TOI that despite a high number of dog bite cases in Rajasthan, the implementation of the ABC programme remains poor.Municipal corporations such as Kota, Jodhpur, Bikaner, and Udaipur, which initiated the ABC programme halted it due to a lack of funds, expertise, and commitment from implementing agencies. Currently, the programme only runs jointly under JMC Greater and Heritage.“Supreme Court is asking for trained volunteers to implement this programme, especially when it comes to catching dogs. The problem is we don’t have trained volunteers, nor experts to train them. This is the reason behind the death of a stray dog in Shahpura Saturday that created furore on social media. It would be a great challenge to implement this programme following the recent directive of the apex court,” an official stated.In Rajasthan, ULBs float tenders and appoint agencies for one or two years to carry out the ABC programme. Typically, a few veterinary surgeons from the city participate in these tenders and receive work orders on a rotational basis. While these vets are skilled in surgeries and vaccinating strays, most lack the trained manpower needed to catch strays from the roads.Another significant issue is a fund crunch. Often, ULBs award tenders for ABC surgeries at rates significantly lower than the official rate, making it impossible for agencies to manage the programme for a larger number of dogs.“Although the official rate for ABC surgery is Rs 1,650 per dog, the municipal corporations awarded bids quoting only Rs 800 per dog. Almost all the outsourced agencies are run by private vets, and they won’t compromise with the ‘fate’ of the dogs. Else, their image as private practitioners will be tarnished. So, they compromise with the numbers,” said Mariam Abuhaideri, an animal activist.
Lack of expertise may foil animal birth control plan | Jaipur News
