Vets at SMC wing resume duties after four-day work boycott
The temporary halt comes at a critical time for the city which has already logged over 18,000 canine bite cases this year alone.
Till May this year, the city has seen 18,143 cases of dog bites (File photo) The drive to sterilise and administer anti-rabies vaccination to stray dogs took a hit for four days before a work boycott by veterinarians at Surat Municipal Corporation’s (SMC’s) animal birth control (ABC) wing was called off on Tuesday afternoon after officials’ intervention.
The vets, who are employed by a contractor that runs the ABC unit, alleged that they had not been paid their salaries since February. The situation came to light when a team from the local monitoring committee, comprising a government veterinary officer, members of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and a nominated member of an animal welfare organisation, visited the ABC centre at Bhestan and met the doctors on Sunday.
On Monday, SMC issued a show-cause notice to the contractor, Vet Society for Animal Welfare and Rural Development, and sought its response on the issue.
The ABC wing has 15 staffers, three of whom are vets.
While the city has reported 91,993 cases of dog bites in the last two and a half years, it has sterilised 29,139 strays in the same period, according to an SMC official. Till May this year, the city has seen 18,143 cases of dog bites, the official noted.
In a recent case, a 10-year-old boy was brutally attacked by three stray dogs in the parking area of Tirupati Market on Ring Road in Surat. His father Sabirali Siddiki, a resident of Salabatpura and a native of Kanpur in UP, rushed him to SMIMER hospital in a critical condition. On Tuesday, his condition was reported to be stable.
In another incident, a minor boy was attacked outside his house in the Khanpur area of Limbayat on May 20.
“After a dog bite incident is reported, SMC teams try to catch the dog/s responsible, and bring them to the ABC unit at Bhestan,” said another SMC official.
Additional superintendent of SMC’s market wing Ravi Patel said: “We came to know that the contractor met the vets today (Tuesday). I spoke to the contractor firm, and its officials assured me that the issue has been resolved, and that the doctors would be getting back to their duties soon.”
Meanwhile, SMC health officer Dr Pradeep Umrigar said the corporation was planning to launch its second ABC wing. “Bhestan ABC can manage 600 dogs for sterilisation and anti-rabies vaccination at a time. At Variyav, we will start our second ABC centre. We are also planning to build three shelters at Variyav, Sachin, and Pasodara; each will be able to hold 500 dogs.”
Share
