Conveying a strong signal to prevent rabies in humans, Corporation Commissioner Gaurav Kumar and officials from the health wing administered rabies vaccine on 1,239 stray dogs on October 10 (Saturday) alone.
According to officials, the city, which has 100 wards in five zones, has a dog population of 38,348 categorised as stray dogs and 25,471 among them had been vaccinated as per the National Rabies Control Programme.
In August-September alone, 18,220 dogs were vaccinated. After a brief lull, the health department swung into action following large-scale complaints of stray dog attacks. There were also freak road accidents due to the rise in the stray dog population, a veterinarian said.
The Commissioner visited a few residential areas in Parasakthi Nagar, MMC Colony, Ganapathi Nagar and Villapuram on Saturday.
The officials said that with the support of animal welfare activists and volunteers from the Safe Home Foundation and Seeshas Kennel Foundation, the Corporation was successful in administering the rabies on 1,239 dogs on a single day with eight teams.
The objective of the drive was to prevent rabies on humans and also ensure that the dogs were not harmful due to the rabies, a doctor, who was supervising the operation in Uthangudi, said.
Published – October 10, 2026 08:47 pm IST
