Have we become so consumerist that in the name of development, a shopping complex gets priority over saving animal livesIJ A case in point is demolition of Dehradun’s historic district veterinary hospital to set up a shopping complex, while a countless animals in the city are in dire need of medical care. It seems that authorities have stopped caring for
living creatures which cannot talk or reason.
When the important veterinary hospital situated on Dispensary Road was bulldozed almost ten years ago, Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority (MDDA) had promised to allocate four shops in the new shopping complex for opening a veterinary clinic to provide at least some basic medical care to pets and the innumerable animals for whom the demolished hospital had been a saviour of animal lives since British era. However, almost a decade on, the MDDA refuses to live up to its commitment for the clinic, alleged sources.
“MDDA is reluctant in giving the promised four shops for opening a canine clinic that can be easily accessed by the general public for both pets and stray dogs,” Dehradun’s Chief Veterinary Officer Dr RS Negi told The Pioneer.
And this is not all. Almost a decade on, Dehradun awaits the district veterinary hospital that was to be built at
Transport Nagar in place of the demolished Dispensary Road hospital.
What persists is a miserable situation where Government veterinary doctors struggle to treat a heavy caseload of injured and sick animals daily from three small, unhygienic and run-down shops in Kanwali Road residential colony without even basic infrastructure. The set-up cannot be even called a primary veterinary centre and animals are treated on an unkempt floor that works as a dangerous breeding ground for infections. A small substandard table in a dingy cubicle with soiled walls is all there to perform even major surgeries. Drips, medication, nursing of wounds, emergency care, and diagnosis are all done in the shoddy premises.
There is no waiting area, not even essential diagnostic equipment and an examination room.
Ironically, this so-called veterinary hospital exposes sick animals to serious health risks. This makeshift veterinary facility has been very inappropriately set-up right in the middle of a residential colony and people living in the area have lodged multiple written complaints against it.
The Pioneer’s investigation has found that this makeshift facility is running in utter violation of Veterinary Council of India - (Veterinary Practice) Regulations, 2005. As per the regulations, there must be a waiting room for clients that are of an adequate size and with sufficient seating for the workload of the Veterinary Institutions. There should be a seating area sufficient for three people (owners of sick animal) per consulting veterinarian, sufficient diagnostic equipment such as thermometer, stethoscope, otoscope, opthalmoscope, examination gloves, lubricant, fluorescing strips, ophthalmic local anaesthetic drops, and weighing scales - these being the minimum essential) to carry out routine physical examinations of the sick animal. Examination rooms should be equipped with a suitable ventilation system or an exhaust facility to remove offensive odours rapidly.
The regulations further state that the premises must be maintained to a high standard, kept clean, and in good decorative order with offensive odour eliminated as far as possible. The outside of the building must be maintained in a good state of repair. The immediate area surrounding the building must be kept clean and tidy. There should be car parking available for clients with easy access to the main entrance of the premises. There should be a sanitary environment that include the proper routine disposal of waste material, proper sterilisation or sanitation of all equipment used in diagnosis or treatment, and adequate storage to provide a neat and orderly appearance.
“The Dispensary Road district veterinary hospital was an arterial primary and referral medical care facility with wards, surgery rooms and accommodation. The hospital compound also had residences of government veterinary doctors, thus we were available virtually 24X7 for emergencies. I remember that before we shifted out in 2009, almost every alternate night I used to get calls at any time of the night or wee hours for emergency cases. Since that hospital was demolished, emergency animal patients are deprived of medical care after 2 pm,” Dr Kailash Uniyal, Deputy Chief Veterinary Hospital, Dehradun and president of Uttarakhand Veterinary Services Association told The Pioneer.
“Kumaon has an equipped hospital for animals at the Pantnagar Veterinary College. However, Garhwal does not have even one state-of-the-art vet hospital. We work with very inadequate infrastructure in unhygienic conditions amid flies, mosquitoes and germs,” pointed out Uniyal.
Elaborating on the pathetic state of the centre on Kanwali Road, he said the medical facility serves as a referral hospital for not only Dehradun but places like Haridwar, Paonta Sahib and Pauri treating over 13,000 animals every year.
So many stray animals die because they do not get accommodation during treatment. The Pioneer tried to contact MDDA and the Animal Husbandry department for comments but did not get any response. The question is: If animals cannot talk, should they be left in the lurchIJ Is anyone listening, one wonders.