Kathmandu, February 4:

The Epidemiology and Disease Control Division (EDCD) under the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) is planning to introduce a Canine Control Programme to check rabies by vaccinating stray and community dogs.

The programme will be piloted in two municipalities, Biratnagar and Janakpur, from March 14.

Dr Manas Banerjee, senior health administrator at the EDCD said that since 80 per cent of the rabies cases are reported due to dog bite, the EDCD is introducing the programme. “The expansion of the programme will depend on the results from these two municipalities,” Dr Banarjee said.

According to the programme, female dogs will be sterilised with help from various NGOs, along with vaccinating dogs, deworming them and tagging them so that it would be easy to find out whether the dog that bit a person was vaccinated or not. “Most of the children who die from rabies were not treated or did not receive adequate post-exposure treatment. Hence, if the main source could be vaccinated, deaths can be prevented,” Dr Banerjee said.

According to the EDCD, 89.2 per cent of rabies are caused by dog bite, while the per centage of other animals causing the disease is very small. It is estimated that around 30,000 people take vaccination against rabies each year and around 50 people lost their lives due to the disease.

EDCD has been providing 5 per cent Inactivated Anti- Rabies Vaccine to 60 health institutions throughout the country. According to the EDCD, 4232 people were administered the rabies vaccine in 2002.

Research shows that mostly men are bit by dogs due to their nature of work. A total of 71 per cent male and 29 per cent female come for Post-exposure treatment, it shows. According to Dr Banerjee, the two municipalities are selected as the number of rabies cases is more compared to other places. “We have to activate the provision of vaccinating domestic dogs and there should be a tag for every one of them as per the Municipality Act, 2020,” he said.