Punjab To Sign MOU With Animal Welfare Board Of India To Curb The Menace Of Stray Dogs

5 Dariya News

Chandigarh 16-May-2011

In a bid to effectively tackle the menace of stray dogs and animals in the state, the Punjab Government would soon sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) to train its Veterinary doctors and paramedics.A decision to this effect was taken here today by Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in a meeting with the Chairman AWBI Maj. Gen. (Retd.) Dr. RM Kharb and the senior officers of state government this afternoon.Dr. Kharb informed that AWBI was a statutory and advisory body to the Government of India (GoI) working under the aegis of Ministry of Environment and ForestIt was decided in the meeting that from mid June the AWBI would impart training to the veterinary teams comprising two doctors and five paramedics from Punjab in different batches, for catching and managing the stray dogEach team would be deputed in every city after the completion of its formal training to undertake these operation  Taking part in the deliberations, Badal emphasized the need for joint efforts of the Local Government and Animal Husbandry Department to effectively check the ever increasing cases of dog bites, which had posed a grave threat to human lives, besides resulting in several road accidentHe also asked the officers to prepare an action plan in tandem with the organizers of Gau-Shalas at district levels for the proper management and care of abandoned cows in urban and rural areaEarlier, in a meeting with a farmers’ delegation of Bhartiya Kissan Union (Rajewal Group), Badal said that he was well aware of the major challenge posed to the very life of the human beings and enormous damage caused to the standing crops by the wild animals and stray dogHe assured that the state government was seriously contemplating to soon chalk out a detailed action plan to get rid of the nuisance caused by the canines and wild animal  Prominent amongst those who attended the meeting included Chief Parliamentary Secretary Animal Husbandry Des Raj Dhugga, Financial Commissioner Animal Husbandry Jagpal Singh Sandhu, Principal Secretary Local Government Suresh Kumar, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister S.K. Sandhu, Principal Secretary Health Vini Mahajan, Special Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Gurkirat Kirpal Singh besides Commissioners of the  Municipal Corporation Aitsar, Patiala, Ludhiana, Bathinda and the Chairman Gau Sewa Board (GSB) Punjab Kimati Bhagat, Vice Chairman GSB Devi Dayal Prashar and Member (Co-opted) Animal Welfare Board of India Dr. Sandeep Kumar Jain