Municipal Corporation Patiala Strengthens Animal Birth Control Programme; Additional Commissioner Reviews ABC Centre

Patiala, July 17:

To further strengthen the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Programme in the city, Additional Commissioner of Municipal Corporation Patiala, Simerpreet Kaur conducted a comprehensive inspection of the Animal Birth Control Centre along with officials of the Health Branch, ABC Centre and its staff.

During the inspection, the Additional Commissioner reviewed the functioning of the centre, including kennel maintenance, cleanliness, infrastructure, operational arrangements and overall management. She also examined the relevant records, registers and documentation to ensure that the programme is being implemented effectively in accordance with the prescribed guidelines.

She informed that the Municipal Corporation has already launched an Emergency Dog Bite Complaint Helpline (+91 62846 68219), through which citizens can report dog bite incidents and other related complaints to the Municipal Corporation.

Simerpreet Kaur said that, under the directions of Mayor Kundan Gogia and Commissioner Pooja Syal Grewal, the Municipal Corporation is committed to achieving 100% sterilization of stray dogs through a ward-wise and hotspot-based strategy. She directed Health Officer Dr Navinder Singh, Surgeon Dr Ankit Narang, and officials of the Health Branch and ABC Centre to prepare and implement a focused action plan to ensure complete coverage of all identified hotspot areas as per the prescribed targets.

She said that the existing ABC Centre has 15 kennels and is currently managed by an ABC Project Head, one Assistant Surgeon, one para-veterinary staff member, a dedicated dog-catching team and one sanitation worker.

Simerpreet Kaur further informed that the new Animal Birth Control Centre, with a capacity of 25 kennels, is nearing completion and will become operational shortly. The new facility will significantly enhance the Municipal Corporation’s capacity for sterilization and post-operative care of stray animals.

To strengthen field operations, one additional dog-catching vehicle with a dedicated team will be deployed from tomorrow, while additional manpower will also be engaged shortly to improve the efficiency and coverage of the Animal Birth Control Programme across the city.