A two-week-long mass anti-rabies vaccination programme has been launched in the city from Monday.The Mission Rabies is organising the campaign for the first time here for vaccination of both pet and stray dogs in 30 wards of the city, informed Dr Dagmar Mayor and his team on Tuesday.
The People for Animals has been associated with this mission funded by the Worldwide Veterinary Services (UK, India) and the Dogs Trust. The Dog Trust would vaccinate over two lakh stray and pet dogs in the country free of cost.
Giving priority to the capital of Odisha, around 6,000 stray and pet dogs in the city would be vaccinated. The State Animal Resources Development Department and students and doctors of the Veterinary College are also participating in the drive.
It may be stated that several people have been affected by dog bite in the city. With vaccination of the dogs, people would not be that much affected by dog bite, said People for Animals secretary Amulya Nayak and adviser Prakash Kumar Mohapatra.
Besides, to trace the stray dogs in the city, trained dog-catchers have come from various States and five teams are engaged in various wards for vaccination of the dogs.