TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: The burning issue of stray dog menace plaguing the commercial capital figured prominently at the Tuesday meeting of the Margao Municipal Council, with City Fathers demanding toning up of the infrastructure with dog bite cases on the rise in the city.
Councillor Pratima Coutinho pointed out that the NGO cannot be blamed for the sorry state of affairs as tackling the stray dog menace is the prime responsibility of the Municipality. “How can you expect any solution when there are no dog catchers and no cages to house the stray dogs after sterilisation”, she wondered, while making a strong case for the funding of the NGO to achieve desired results.
Councillor Raju Naik echoed similar sentiments, while praising the good efforts put in by the Coordinator of South Goa Animal Welfare Trust for Animals, Sandra Fernandes. “The NGO needs to be appreciated for the work despite all odds”, he said.
Even as one or two Councillors questioned the need to hike the monthly grant from Rs 16,000 to Rs 25,000, there were others who defended the proposal, saying the Municipal should appoint its own manpower to catch the dogs and ascertain the cost involved in dog catching.
Chairperson Dayanand Deulkar finally said that the Council will do a follow up with the department of Animal Husbandry to allot space admeasuring 300 sq.mts which will help to house around 200 cages.
Meanwhile, the council has constituted the Town Vending Committee as per the National policy for Urban Street Vendors 2009.
During discussions, Councillors demanded that Goan vendors who have been eking a living on the streets should be give first preference, even as the Chief Officer maintained that all Indians are eligible for benefits under the scheme. The Chief Officer further maintained that vendors who have completed 10 years of vending will be eligible for the scheme.
