The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) on Wednesday opened a new animal birth-control and pet treatment centre and two modern cattle shelters in the southern parts of the city as part of measures to control stray dogs and cattle.
Animal Husbandry Minister S. Kamali inaugurated the facilities constructed at a combined cost of Rs. 6.45 crore in Perungudi zone.
The dog birth-control and pet treatment centre at ward 188 on the Tambaram-Velachery Main Road was constructed at a cost of Rs. 1.64 crore over 563.37 sq m. The facility has 100 kennels and 50 rooms and can conduct up to 20 surgeries a day. It also has a doctor’s room, operation theatre, pharmacy, pet treatment room and kitchen.
A modern cattle shelter constructed on 1,003.52 sq m at a cost of Rs. 2.56 crore at the same location can accommodate 100 cattle. It has facilities including a doctor’s room, pharmacy, treatment room and fodder storage.
The second cattle shelter at Veerapandiya Kattabomman Cross Street in ward 184 was built at a cost of Rs 2.25 crore on 941 sq m and can accommodate 120 cattle. It has medical and treatment facilities, a fodder store, toilet and bathing facilities.
The Corporation currently operates 12 dog birth-control centres across the city at Pulianthope, Lloyds Colony, Kannammapet, Meenambakkam, Sholinganallur, Chettimedu, Tiruvottiyur, Madhavaram, Kannappar Thidal, Perungudi and Nandambakkam.
Two more dog sterilisation and pet treatment centres are nearing completion at Athipattu in Ambattur and near the biogas plant in Sholinganallur.
To tackle stray cattle on roads, the Corporation has allotted one cattle-catching vehicle to each of its 15 zones and deployed five cattle-catching workers in each zone.
The civic body is also developing modern cattle shelters at 18 locations with a combined capacity of around 2,000 cattle. Eleven shelters are currently operational and house around 1,230 cattle.
With the two shelters opened on Wednesday, another 220 cattle can be accommodated. Five more shelters are under construction at Tiruvottiyur, Royapuram, Ambattur, Krishnampet and near the ISKCON temple in Sholinganallur, which will together provide capacity for another 550 cattle.