Chennai, July 27 (IANS) Civic bodies across Vellore, Ranipet and Tiruvannamalai districts in Tamil Nadu have intensified large-scale vaccination and sterilisation of community dogs following a recent attack on a three-year-old boy in neighbouring Tirupattur district.
The campaign aims to improve public safety, particularly for children and senior citizens, while controlling the stray dog population through humane measures. The renewed drive gathered pace after three-year-old N. Rithvik was reportedly attacked by a pack of community dogs while playing outside his house in Vaniyambadi town a few days ago.
CCTV footage of the incident went viral on social media, triggering widespread public concern and prompting local administrations to strengthen ongoing animal birth control and vaccination programmes.
Residents have welcomed the intensified campaign, saying sustained vaccination and sterilisation will gradually reduce the stray dog population and make residential neighbourhoods safer for children and elderly people.
The programme is being implemented jointly by the Department of Animal Husbandry, the Tamil Nadu Animal Welfare Board and non-governmental organisations. Major urban local bodies, including the Vellore and Tiruvannamalai Corporations, have been conducting weekly vaccination and sterilisation camps every Saturday for the past month.
Authorities have also integrated the campaign with the ongoing Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccination programme for cattle, which is scheduled to conclude on August 1. Veterinarians have been deployed to simultaneously carry out both drives to maximise coverage and ensure efficient utilisation of manpower.
According to official data, Vellore district has an estimated 45,829 community dogs, of which Vellore Corporation accounts for 27,102. Pernambut has 2,188 dogs, while Gudiyatham has 1,973. As of July 25, a total of 15,641 dogs had been vaccinated across the district, including 7,496 within the Vellore Corporation limits.
In Tiruvannamalai, where an average of 1.5 lakh devotees visit the Arunachaleswar Temple every day, authorities have prioritised vaccination of community dogs found near schools, hospitals and other public places. Of the town’s estimated 5,175 community dogs, more than 4,000 have already been vaccinated.
The Corporation is also constructing its first dedicated Animal Birth Control (ABC) centre at a cost of Rs 64 lakh to strengthen sterilisation efforts and improve long-term management of the stray dog population.
In neighbouring Ranipet district, around 12,000 community dogs have been identified across major towns, including Ranipet, Sholinghur, Walajah, Arcot, Arakkonam and Melvisharam. Ranipet town alone accounts for 5,787 dogs. Officials said more than 60 per cent of the district’s identified community dogs have already been vaccinated as the campaign continues across urban local bodies.
–IANS
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