Jammu, Jan 15 (KNS): Indicating that dog bits in Srinagar city is on rise, the government on Monday informed the legislative Assembly that a total of 20098 dog bite cases were registered in Kashmir valley in 2017.
In a written reply to National Conference legislator from Khanyar Ali Mohmmad Sagar, the government has said that from January 2017 to November 2017, the health facilities from across valley registered a total of 20098 dog bite cases.
In Srinagar’s SMHS Hospital, the government told the Legislative Assembly that the hospital’s Anti-Rabies Clinic recorded a massive 6825 dog bite cases.“The most of dog bite cases were received from Srinagar – 5060,” the government informed.
Likewise, the government details showed that Baramulla recorded 3220 such cases followed by Budgam where 2762 cases of dog bites were recorded. Anantnag received 2492, Budgam 2762, Bandipora, 742, Ganderbal, 1119, Kargil 11, Kulgam, 1839, Kupwara, 256, Leh-Ladakh 797, Pulwama 1936, Shopian 470, such cases, it added.
The government has said that SMC has been working on multiple strategies to control the dog menace within the city, mainly focusing on minimizing the availability of energy rich food and garbage on the roads and animal birth control programme.
The government has also said that all such patients have been provided treatment as per the guidelines of post-exposure treatment depending on category of contact with the animals.
The government has admitted that multiplication rate of dogs is quite high but their survival rate mainly depends on the availability of the food. “If the food is available in abundance, the multiplication and survival rate will be higher, if the availability of food waste is curtailed this will have a bearing on the life span and proliferation rate of stray dogs,” the government has said. (KNS)