A coalition of citizens, animal welfare activists, and health professionals in Mumbai has put forward a detailed, science-backed alternative to the Supreme Court's recent order advocating for the mass confinement of stray dogs in shelters. The group, operating under the banner of Jeev Sabha, presented its framework during a press conference on Monday, arguing for a more effective and humane long-term strategy.
A Four-Pillar Framework for Humane Management
The collective's proposal centers on a systematic, in-situ approach to managing the street dog population and preventing rabies. Their plan rests on four key pillars designed to work in unison. First, they call for a significant scaling up of the existing Animal Birth Control (ABC) program, coupled with annual mass anti-rabies vaccination drives across the city.
The second pillar focuses on better integration between public health authorities and municipal systems. This integration aims to create predictable cycles for vaccination and sterilization, establish unified disease surveillance networks, and implement standardized protocols for handling strays and rabies cases.
Third, the framework emphasizes the need to strengthen post-bite response mechanisms to ensure victims receive immediate and proper medical care. Finally, Jeev Sabha advocates for a major public awareness campaign grounded in scientific facts. This campaign is intended to counter widespread fear-mongering about stray dogs, which the group says often leads to animal abuse.
Experts Decry Fear, Highlight Preventable Nature of Rabies
Speakers at the conference strongly criticized the idea of mass sheltering as an ad hoc and reactive measure. They argued that confining dogs does not address the root causes of population growth or rabies transmission and may even exacerbate problems by disrupting stable, sterilized dog territories.
Prominent psychiatrist Dr. Anjali Chhabria addressed the psychological dimension, stating, "When we talk about rabies, what we're really talking about is fear." She highlighted how this irrational fear drives harsh policies. Dr. Shweta Singh, a Clinical Associate in Critical Care Medicine at Kokilaben Hospital, underscored that rabies prevention must be treated as a non-negotiable public health priority.
Both experts reiterated a crucial medical fact: rabies is 100% preventable with timely vaccination and is treatable if medical care is administered promptly after a bite. They aligned their call with the World Health Organization's global 'Zero by 30' initiative, which aims to eliminate human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by the year 2030.
Mumbai's Own Data Supports the ABC Model
To bolster their argument for systematic management over confinement, the organisers pointed to Mumbai's own decade-long data. A 10-year review (2014-2024) of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) street dog management program shows tangible results from the ABC and sterilization approach.
The report indicates a 21.8% reduction in the city's overall dog density. The estimated dog population decreased from approximately 95,172 dogs (or 10.54 dogs per square kilometer) in 2014 to about 90,757 dogs (8.01 dogs per square kilometer) in 2024. This decline demonstrates the effectiveness of sustained sterilization efforts in controlling population growth humanely.
However, the review also noted a concerning 11.9% dip in sterilizations conducted directly by the BMC, bringing the current sterilization rate down to 62.9%. This drop highlights the need for increased investment and scaling up of the very programs that have proven successful, rather than abandoning them for untested, large-scale sheltering.
The Jeev Sabha's proposal presents a clear, data-driven path forward that prioritizes both public health and animal welfare, challenging the notion that the only solution to human-dog conflict is the mass removal of dogs from their urban environments.
