‘Torturing canines won’t solve stray dogs menance’: Kerala CM urges people to stop animal cruelty

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday urged people not to resort to violent measures to deal with stray dog menace in the state and said beating, poisoning and tying up the canines on the streets will not solve the problem.

"Indulging in such acts is unacceptable," he said. Speaking on the measures being taken by the government to deal with the issue, the CM also appealed to the public to protect domestic dogs and not leave them on the streets.

"This problem cannot be solved by killing the dogs. Registration of pet dogs will be made mandatory in the state. Panchayat will provide registration certificates within three days after completion of vaccination of domestic dogs," he told reporters here.

Vijayan noted that an intensive vaccination drive for stray dogs has already begun in most of the local government bodies in the state. It has already been decided to hold an intensive vaccine campaign that will last till October 20.

As many as 21 deaths due to rabies were reported in the state so far this year out of which 15 had not received the anti-rabies vaccine (IDRV) and immunoglobulin (ERIG). A field-level investigation has been completed to ascertain the cause of all 21 deaths. An expert committee was appointed to investigate all the deaths in detail, he added.