THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
Kerala Tourism is to seek the services of the city-based non-governmental organisation (ngo) to curb the growing menace from stray dogs and the canines that roam the famed beaches of Kovalam and Papanasham in Varkala.
The services of Street Dog Watch Association, a ngo through which the British citizen Mary Muscroft had been successfully tackling the stray dog menace in the beach resort of Kovalam since 2013 is to be used for another six months.
The sterilisation of the dogs and the awareness campaign involving tips and messages on tackling and handling of dogs on the Eve’s Beach has resulted in bringing down the number of stray dogs from 643 in 2014 to 485 in 2015 and 79 in 2016.
Ms. Muscroft, a staunch animal lover, has been called in by the tourism authorities following the concern over stray dog menace at the two prime tourist destinations and incidents of dogs chasing locals, including the holidayers.
In the next six months, the ngo has been asked to sterilize 270 dogs, including 180 in Papanasham beach and surroundings and release them back to the locality from where they are picked up. Besides, the ngo has been asked to carry out vaccination in dogs against rabies and create awareness.
“Administrative sanction had been received from Kerala Tourism for ₹.4.1 lakh project. We will be executing agreement with the ngo soon to launch the programme, says the District Tourism Promotion Council Secretary T. V. Prasanth.
At present, the locals and hoteliers in Kovalam are depending on Ms. Muscroft in case of any emergency related to dogs. Ms. Muscroft along with her husband, Steve is extending the helping hand from the two rented houses that has a clinic and a full-fledged operation theatre for carrying out sterilisation.
“We have sterilised 1300 dogs in the Kovalam area already. As many as 88 resident dogs are in our home now and we take care of 160 dogs’’, Ms. Muscroft, who is also a professional singer, told The Hindu on Saturday. The sterilised dogs are dropped back into locality after two to three days and are constantly monitored. Three employees are on the rolls to assist and the local vets are hired for sterilisation.
The ABC programme had helped the people and not the dogs, Ms. Muscroft says, urging the citizens to keep in mind the point ‘ignore the canines and they will ignore you’.
EOM/ARK
