How are NGOs, BMC navigating Mumbai's stray animal woes?

Mumbai's streets are home to an agonising sight: stray animals trying to navigate through the mayhem of the city. The animals - whether born on the streets or abandoned by their owners - face malnourishment, sickness, and starvation. The pressing necessity for action has made animal welfare organisations into rays of hope for these helpless creatures.

Despite the difficulties, several committed Mumbai animal welfare groups put forth great effort to lessen the suffering of stray animals. Leading the charge in promoting the rights of stray animals are groups like 'Save Our Strays' and 'Welfare of the Stray Dogs'.

Effectively managing the number of stray animals is one of the main issues Mumbai's animal protection community is facing. A trend towards more compassionate ways has resulted from the ineffectiveness and cruelty of traditional procedures like culling. Campaigns for immunisation and sterilisation are gathering steam, but their broad success is still hampered by a lack of funding and public awareness.

Shirley Menon of Save Our Strays said that the organisation mainly focuses on the sterilisation of the strays. She pointed out, "We identify areas that have dogs that are not neutered through our feeders/volunteers network. People also call our helpline #9820141310 and those dogs are listed. We vaccinate most dogs in advance and three weeks later plan pick-ups for neutering at the IDA or BSPCA ABC centres. All the logistics of transport etc is done by our ambulances and staff."
"There is a huge gap between the need and the capacity which unfortunately cannot be bridged without the support of the BMC," she pointed out.

'Of 36, Four SPCA Functional in Maharashtra'

Shushank Tomar of Citizens for Animal Protection also noted that the overpopulation of stray animals is a major issue. "We have our centre named Freedom Farm in Thane's Ghodbunder area which can house 50 animals but there are 81 animals at the shelter presently and more coming & going," he said highlighting the issue of overpopulation.

Tomar, who is also a state animal welfare officer appointed by the Bombay High Court and Govt of Maharashtra, pointed out that out of 36 districts in the state, only four have functional Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA). He said, "The government is not neutering these which is a cause of overpopulation."

Tomar added, "I am aware that Mumbai has four to five centres, Thane has one and one in the Kalyan-Dombivali region but the rural areas have no SPCA. Through our legal team, we filed an RTI last year and wrote a letter to all district SPCAs seeking the current situation of the facility. Out of the 36, seven of the letters were returned because there was no office at the address mentioned on the government website. We also sent emails of which four emails were not delivered (since the IDs did not exist). So it is there on paper, but nothing is there on the ground."

Shushank further added that despite the government having provisions, they don't implement the rules adequately which is why NGOs and individuals have to step in.

Abodh Aras of The Welfare of Stray Dogs (WSD) said that there are only three places in Mumbai that the civic body had allotted for sterilisation program which the municipal corporation owned.

He said, "There needed to have been more such places available to carry out sterilisation," and added, "(as a reaction) some NGOs began privately renting spaces to run the facilities. However, in a city like Mumbai, it is difficult to get a place to run a sterilisation centre or clinic."

Healthcare for Stray Animals

Shushank said that the animals are given two major vaccines which are Anti-rabies and 9-in-1. While it is known that anti-rabies vaccine is beneficial for animals and humans as well in the absence of a cure for rabies.

"Even though the government is doing it (administering strays with anti-rabies vaccine), but not consistently. There needs to be a sustainable approach in this situation because if you don't give vaccines for three years, then there are chances that the virus might come back," he stated adding that the 9-in-1 vaccine is a major concern since other viruses like distemper, gastroparco are contagious to other animals.

"If an animal is contaminated with a gastro virus or distemper virus, the mortality rate is very high. So there's no way we can save the animal. Only out of 100, maybe two or three animals can be saved with a consistent treatment. We have mentioned this to the government multiple times, but it is not being prioritised. The government is not prioritising it since it does not affect humans."

Animal Cruelty
The other major concern is the stray animal-human conflict that urban spaces witness. There have been incidents wherein persons who feed strays have been at the receiving end of mistreatment.

Speaking on Animal Cruelty, Shushank noted that it is not reported as widely as it should be. He said that his organisation assists people in filing an FIR in cases of animal cruelty but stated that the process is arduous due to the absence of adequate SPCAs despite the rules being laid out a little over two decades ago in 2001.

Rules to Protect Animals

National Laws

Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960: This Act prohibits infliction of pain or suffering on any animal, including neglect. It empowers animal welfare authorities to investigate cruelty cases and prosecute offenders.

Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules, 2001: This rule mandates the humane sterilisation of stray dogs to control population growth and prevent rabies outbreaks. The 2023 amendments emphasize responsible implementation by municipalities and recognized animal welfare organizations.

Indian Penal Code, Sections 428 & 429: The Sections specifically criminalise acts of cruelty towards animals, including poisoning, maiming, and abandoning them.

State-Level Protection

Maharashtra Animal Welfare Board: This state-level body oversees animal welfare in Maharashtra, including Mumbai. It formulates policies, guides the implementation of national laws, and provides grants to animal shelters and welfare organisations.

Bombay High Court Rulings: Recent High Court rulings have played a significant role in shaping animal welfare practices in Mumbai. For example, the 2022 order clarified that feeding stray dogs is not illegal, but emphasised responsible feeding practices and cooperation with authorities for sterilisation programs.

Civic Protection

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has an Animal Birth Control (ABC) Programme which was started in 2001. They have a Catch-Neuter-Vaccinate-Release (CNVR) policy, which is bolstered by mobile veterinary units and partnerships with non-governmental organisations. Additionally, BMC has to oversee shelters for sick, injured, or abandoned animals. In these facilities, medical attention, rehabilitation programmes, and chances for adoption must be provided. Officers dedicated to animal welfare are essential in handling complaints, upholding laws, and instructing the public on safe pet keeping.

Challenges NGOs face

When asked about the challenges 'Save Our Strays' comes across in administering care, food, and shelter to the population of strays, Menon said, "The main hurdles are limited donations and the traffic situation in Mumbai. We run a food program, under which we provide rice and cat food valued at over Rs 60,000 every month to the poor feeders. They are the ones who help us identify the strays who need medical assistance, neutering, etc. The 80 per cent of our work is in the slums and the highly dense pockets in Mumbai."

Abodh Aras of the WSD also said that raising money is a big challenge. Aras said, "WSD runs a sterilisation program for street dogs and cats. We also have a community-driven program wherein our team of nurses and vets go and treat dogs on-site. We have eight animal nurses and a vet for this."

Apart from this, the organisation runs an awareness campaign and has an adoption program, promoting the adoption of indies or stray animals. He said they also have a centre in Sewri where they conduct outpatient consultations for strays.

"We don't charge money for the services we provide. One big challenge (for us) is raising funds and it is not easy to do so."

Potential Solutions

Shirley Menon, speaking to mid-day said, "The BMC's handling of the issues leaves a lot to be ideal and acceptable by the standards required to address the large and growing population in Mumbai."

"They should implement what they agree to in meetings. Follow the guidelines shared by the AWBI and if that happens we can move towards addressing the issues and resolving the human-animal conflicts in our community," she added.

Shirley, while responding to a question on what BMC could do better, said, "The authorities need to set up 10 ABC centres geographically conducive to addressing the population that needs to be neutered. These centres need to be run by NGOs and not vendors who win these contracts through a tendering process. There is no quality control and there is scope for corruption at the cost of the defenceless strays."

When asked about how can one deal with the human-stray conflict, Abodh Aras said that the organisation tries to spread awareness among people on the dog-human relationship and educate them on how the conflict can be minimised.

"We reach out to thousands of children every year. Our organisation has four persons who handle the education program," Abodh said.

Terming the mistreatment of feeders as "unfortunate" he said that they are doing a huge service. He said that the local feeders are of great help when one wants to go catch a dog to vaccinate or sterilise them.

He said, "Information should be disseminated, via media, among the feeders on how they can responsibly feed the strays in terms of how they should feed them, where they should feed, the timings, etc."

BMC's Current Initiatives
When asked about the plan forward, Dr Kaleem Pathan who looks after the veterinary dept of BMC, said that with help from Human Society Internation, they are conducting a census of the stray dogs in the city.

"We will get an approximate idea about in which wards how many stray dogs are present; thereafter, we will plan and implement a sterilisation program. It is through this census, that we'll know how many strays have been neutered and the ones who are not yet. We have been tasked with sterilisation of 70 per cent of the populace and we aim to do so," said Dr Pathan.

He added, "Continuously and on a mass scale, we (the BMC) have undertaken the vaccination program against the rabies. This program started on September 22, on the occasion of rabies day, and we vaccinated almost 15,000 dogs. And from there on, until now, almost another 10 to 15,000 dogs have been vaccinated."
Concurrently, he said, the corporation has undertaken a vaccination program and four organisations were given a mandate and have been allotted wards to begin their vaccination program against rabies, he explained.

Dr Pathan further stated that BMC has also appointed officials who will go to private and civic schools to hold awareness campaigns educating children on Rabies and animal psychology.

When asked about addressing the issue of human-stray conflict, he remarked that the city's corporation has been appointing surveillance officers in areas where there have been complaints of conflict to minimise the damage.

Mumbai's stray animal epidemic necessitates community response and compassion. While obstacles persist, the tireless efforts of animal welfare organisations provide a ray of hope. The road ahead requires a commitment to responsible pet ownership, increased sterilisation initiatives, and ongoing support from those who diligently campaign for the welfare of our four-legged friends. By banding together as a society, Mumbai can set the path for a more humane and harmonious coexistence between its citizens and the stray animals that roam its streets.