With 12-year-old Abhirami of Pathanamthitta succumbing to dog bite on Monday, the number of persons who lost their lives in Kerala due to bite by stray dogs till Monday shot up to 21.
The number of persons bitten by stray dogs in the State during the last eight months crossed 1,83,000, according to the department of health, Government of Kerala. Though Abhirami had been given three shots of the anti-rabies vaccine, she did not wait for the last dose and breathed her last at Kottayam Medical College Hospital.
Though most of the victims had undergone vaccination, it has not helped to bring down the fatalities. Veena George, Health Minister of the State, had said that there was nothing wrong with the vaccines and had blamed the victims for the mishaps.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had himself told the Legislative Assembly that the vaccines administered for dog bites need to be checked thoroughly and he assured the House that an expert committee would be constituted to check the efficacy of the vaccines.
Renjini Haridas, noted media personality and an animal lover of repute blamed the callousness of government departments for the scenario. “The root cause is the all round failure in waste management. The stray dogs survive and multiply because of the waste food which we throw in the streets. There are hundreds of unlicensed butcher shops in the State and they throw away the waste to the roads. What else the dogs require?” asks Renjini who hogged limelight through agitations she held for animal rights.
Renjini said till the waste management issue remained unresolved, Kerala would face this situation. “I do whatever I can do from my side but the authorities are not helpful,” she said.