Over 14k stray dogs sterilized, vaccinated in Srinagar from June 2023-Oct 2024

Srinagar, Mar 25: The Jammu & Kashmir government on Tuesday informed the Assembly that over 14,000 stray dogs have been sterilized and vaccinated under the Animal Birth Control (ABC) and Anti-Rabies Vaccination (ARV) Programme in Srinagar between June 2023 and October 2024.
The statement came in response to a question raised by MLA Chanapora Mushtaq Guroo, who had asked the government about the steps taken to address the stray dog issue in Srinagar District.
Responding to the question, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who holds the Housing and Urban Development Department (H&UDD) portfolio, said, “The Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) has been actively engaged in a comprehensive sterilization and vaccination drive under the ABC and ARV Programme.” He further added, “The programme aims to sterilize and vaccinate stray dogs to control their population and prevent rabies, with the dogs being released back into their natural habitat after treatment.”
The CM also informed the Assembly that “SMC initially had only one sterilization and rabies immunization centre at the Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, SKUAST Shuhama. However, recognizing the need for greater capacity, two additional centres have been established—one in Tengpora, which is fully operational, and a third at Ahal Chatterhama, which is nearing completion.”
In addition to the sterilization and vaccination efforts, SMC has launched a public awareness campaign. Over 15,000 posters have been distributed across various wards in Srinagar, and hoardings have been installed to further spread the message. The civic body has also been broadcasting jingles related to the programme via public address systems on waste collection vehicles.
According to the records of the SMC’s Veterinary Wing, a total of 14,331 stray dogs have been sterilized and 14,706 vaccinated between June 12, 2023, and October 25, 2024.