After councillors flag disparities, Kochi Corporation tightens monitoring of dog-catching squads

The move follows widespread complaints from councillors in West Kochi alleging discrimination in the allocation of dog-catching services (file image) | Photo Credit: Vishnu Prathap

The Kochi Corporation is set to appoint a health inspector to coordinate requests from councillors for the deployment of dog-catching squads and maintain a division-wise register recording the date and time of each operation.

The move follows widespread complaints from councillors in West Kochi alleging discrimination in the allocation of dog-catching services when the agenda for discussing the contract of a dog catcher came up for discussion in the recent council meeting. They alleged that dog-catching squads visited their divisions far less frequently than others.

Mayor V.K. Minimol said a 15-day advance schedule would be prepared for deploying dog-catching squads, with changes permitted only in emergencies. Admitting that the councillors had a valid concern, the Mayor said discontinuing the contract would only aggravate the situation, as repeated tenders had failed to attract sufficient dog catchers.

LDF parliamentary party leader V.A. Sreejith said similar complaints had been raised several times earlier and questioned why officials had failed to implement decisions taken by the council. He cited a recent incident in his division, Palluruthy-Kacheripady, in which a Haritha Karma Sena member and a sanitation worker were bitten by a stray dog. “Despite repeated requests, the squad arrived only after three days,” he said.

Incentives mooted

The Mayor said the Corporation lacked an effective monitoring mechanism to track the number of dogs being caught. In many months, the number remained below 100, despite the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Centre at Brahmapuram having the capacity to sterilise around 150 dogs a month. She said the Corporation could consider introducing incentives linked to the number of dogs caught.

According to a Corporation official, only 94 dogs had been captured till October 30. Mr. Sreejith suggested that a health official be specifically tasked with monitoring dog-catching activities and made accountable to the council.

BJP calls for better infrastructure

BJP councillor Priya Prasanth said it was unfair to blame dog catchers alone and stressed the need to strengthen basic infrastructure. She called for increasing the number of cages used to house stray dogs during the mandatory three-day post-operative observation period.

The Mayor responded that the number of cages had already been increased.

UDF councillor and Health Standing Committee member Henry Austin said it was a misconception that the stray dog menace could be tackled through the ABC programme alone. Even if 150 dogs were sterilised every month, he argued, the impact would remain marginal.

The Mayor said the Corporation could explore organising special sterilisation camps on the lines of anti-rabies vaccination drives. However, she ruled out the use of mobile sterilisation units, noting that stray dogs could not be released immediately after undergoing surgery.

Published - November 09, 2026 01:30 pm IST