As per Article 246(3) of the Constitution of India, the preservation, protection, and improvement of livestock, as well as the prevention of animal diseases, veterinary training, and practice, fall under the jurisdiction of State Governments. As per Articles 243(W) and 246, local bodies are mandated to control the stray dog population. Accordingly, local bodies are implementing the Animal Birth Control Programme to regulate the population of stray dogs.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) is responsible for the human health component related to dog bites and human rabies. Under the National Rabies Control Program, data on animal bites, including high-risk groups such as children, is being collected, and necessary provisions for post-exposure prophylaxis are being made for all animal bite victims across the country through healthcare facilities. As per the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, state-wise data on dog bite cases and suspected human rabies deaths reported by states and Union Territories from 2022 to 2025 (till January), as per the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme–Integrated Health Information Platform portal, are provided in Annexure-I and Annexure-II, respectively.

The Central Government has notified the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023 in supersession of the Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules, 2001 to strengthen the implementation of the animal birth control programme. Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023 provides for sterilization and vaccination of stray dogs to control the stray dog population, to prevent rabies and to reduce man-dog conflict.

The intensive implementation of the Animal Birth Control program by local bodies is the only rational and scientific solution to the overpopulation of the street dogs and controlling incidence of Rabies. Dogs are sterilized and released back to their original habitats, and since dogs are territorial, they stay in their locality and do not allow dogs from other neighboring areas to come in. These dogs are also vaccinated annually so they are protected from rabies and even if they bite accidentally, they may not transmit Rabies.

The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) has published the revised Animal Birth Control (ABC) module for Street Dogs Population management, rabies eradication and reducing man-dog conflict.

Further, Animal Welfare Board of India provides the Animal Birth Control Project Recognition to the recognized Animal Welfare Organizations to carry out the Sterilization and immunization programme of stray dogs across the country. In addition, the Animal Welfare Board of India has issued following advisories / guidelines for proper welfare of the stray dogs as below:

• Pet Dogs and Street Dogs Circular dated 26.02.2015
• Standard protocol for the adoption of community animals dated 17.05.2022
• Request to Chief Secretary of all State/UTs to implement the provision of Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023 dated 27.03.2023
• Request to Principal Secretary, Urban Development and Animal Husbandry as well as to the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation of all Districts of all State/UTs to implement the provision of Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023 dated 31.03.2023
• Request to al District Magistrate of all Districts of all State/UTs to implement the provision of Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023 dated 30.05.2023

The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare is implementing all necessary activities for rabies elimination in India by 2030 through the National Rabies Control Program (NRCP) in coordination with key stakeholder ministries and departments. Each stakeholder ministry/department has a defined role and set of responsibilities for rabies elimination under the National Action Plan for Dog-Mediated Rabies Elimination by 2030 (NAPRE), as part of the National Rabies Control Program.

The activities undertaken by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) for rabies elimination across the country are mentioned below at Annexure-III

The Government has not conducted a formal assessment of the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Program’s effectiveness in controlling the stray dog population; however, it remains the primary mechanism for managing the issue. The program's effectiveness is supported by several mandatory provisions, including Animal Birth Control Project Recognition for each project, the constitution of Monitoring and Implementation Committees at the Central, State, and Local levels, and other regulatory measures. However, its effectiveness varies across different regions due to implementation challenges.

Further, as per the information received, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike has assessed the effectiveness of the Animal Birth Control Program in controlling the stray dog population. A study conducted in 2019 and 2023 revealed a 10% reduction in the street dog population in 2023 compared to the previous survey. At the same time, the neutering percentage increased by 20%.

ANNEXURE-I

Dog Bite cases reported by states/UTs at IDSP (from 2022-25)

State/UT	2022 (Jan-Dec)	2023 (Jan-Dec)	2024 (Jan-Dec)	2025 (January)
Andaman & Nicobar Islands	345	528	455	52
Andhra Pradesh	192360	212146	245174	23180
Arunachal Pradesh	2501	4409	6388	714
Assam	39919	94945	166232	20900
Bihar	141926	241827	263930	34442
Chandigarh	5365	11782	8644	754
Chhattisgarh	21365	29221	38268	5159
Delhi	6691	17874	25210	3196
Dadra Nagar Haveli And Daman Diu	4169	5921	7926	620
Goa	8057	11904	17236	1789
Gujarat	169363	278537	392837	53942
Haryana	35837	42690	60417	7787
Himachal Pradesh	15935	21096	22909	2135
Jammu And Kashmir	22110	34664	51027	4824
Jharkhand	9539	31251	43874	5344
Karnataka	163356	232715	361494	39437
Kerala	4000	71606	115046	11649
Ladakh	2165	2569	4078	373
Lakshadweep	0	0	0	0
Madhya Pradesh	66018	113499	142948	16710
Maharashtra	393020	472790	485345	56538
Manipur	4450	2964	9257	798
Meghalaya	5302	9611	17784	2466
Mizoram	891	1141	1873	179
Nagaland	452	600	714	85
Odisha	65396	92848	166792	24478
Puducherry	11937	13006	12148	894
Punjab	15519	18680	22912	2164
Rajasthan	88029	103533	140543	15062
Sikkim	3845	6636	8601	840
Tamil Nadu	364435	441796	480427	48931
Telangana	92924	119014	121997	10424
Tripura	3051	6510	9641	1266
Uttarakhand	15649	25623	23091	1790
Uttar Pradesh	191361	229921	164009	20478
West Bengal	22627	48664	76486	10264
Total	21,89,909	30,52,521	37,15,713	4,29,664

* Data source IDSP/IHIP as on 27-2-2025

ANNEXURE-II

Human Rabies cases (Death) reported by states/UTs (from 2022-25)

State/UT	2022 (Jan-Dec)	2023 (Jan-Dec)	2024 (Jan-Dec)	2025 (January)
Andaman & Nicobar Islands	0	0	0	0
Andhra Pradesh	3	0	1	0
Arunachal Pradesh	0	0	1	0
Assam	0	3	1	1
Bihar	1	3	2	0
Chandigarh	1	0	0	0
Chhattisgarh	0	1	0	0
Delhi	0	0	0	0
Dadra Nagar Haveli And Daman Diu	0	0	0	0
Goa	0	0	0	0
Gujarat	0	3	1	0
Haryana	0	0	0	0
Himachal Pradesh	1	1	3	0
Jammu And Kashmir	0	0	0	0
Jharkhand	0	1	1	0
Karnataka	3	4	5	0
Kerala	0	1	3	0
Ladakh	0	0	0	0
Lakshadweep	0	0	0	0
Madhya Pradesh	1	2	6	0
Maharashtra	7	14	14	0
Manipur	1	3	2	0
Meghalaya	0	1	4	0
Mizoram	0	0	0	0
Nagaland	0	0	0	0
Odisha	0	1	0	0
Puducherry	0	0	0	0
Punjab	1	0	0	0
Rajasthan	0	3	0	0
Sikkim	0	0	0	0
Tamil Nadu	2	5	2	0
Telangana	0	0	0	0
Tripura	0	1	1	0
Uttarakhand	0	0	0	0
Uttar Pradesh	0	3	6	0
West Bengal	0	0	1	0
Total	21	50	54	1

* Data source IDSP/IHIP as on 27-2-2025

ANNEXURE-III

The activities undertaken by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) for rabies elimination across the country are as follows:

1. Launch of NAPRE: - Under the ‘National Rabies Control Program’, the "National Action Plan for Dog-Mediated Rabies Elimination by 2030" (NAPRE) was conceptualized and jointly launched by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) in collaboration with the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying (MoFAHD) on September 28, 2021. The NAPRE guidelines consist of two components: Human Health and Animal Health. The implementation of the Human Health component is undertaken by the ‘National Centre for Disease Control’ (NCDC) under Ministry of Health and Family Welfare with dedicated budgetary support, while the implementation of the Animal Health component is to be undertaken by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD) under MoFAHD.  As per Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules, 2001 Mass dog vaccination and dog population management are being done by the animal husbandry department in collaboration with local body authorities.

 

2. Budgetary support to the states under National Rabies Control Program: Under the “National Health Mission”, the states are being supported by providing budget for implementing the ‘National Rabies Control Program’ (NRCP) through budget for Capacity building of the healthcare staff, procurement of rabies vaccines, printing of IEC for rabies & dogbite prevention, for data entry support, review meetings, Monitoring and Surveillance, establishment of Model Anti Rabies Clinics & Wound Washing facilities.

 

3. Availability of ARV and ARS in Health facilities: - The lifesaving drugs like Anti-Rabies Vaccine (ARV) and Anti-Rabies Serum (ARS)/Rabies Immunoglobulin (RIG) are being provided at government hospitals and health facilities under the National Free Drug Initiative of the National Health Mission (NHM). These drugs are also included in the essential drug list of the states.

 

4. Workshops conducted under NRCP for SAPRE: - To develop the ‘State Action Plan for Rabies Elimination’(SAPRE), regional level workshops have been conducted for southern states, northeastern states, North region states and Delhi in the last two years. Rajasthan, Puducherry, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tamilnadu have already launched their SAPREs, while Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Nagaland, Sikkim, Assam, Manipur, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Delhi are yet to launch their SAPREs. Rest other states are drafting their SAPRE

 

5. Establishment of Model Anti Rabies Clinics across the states: Support is being provided to the states' Health Departments for establishing "Model Anti-Rabies Clinics" in the districts to provide care to dog bite victims. As of now, 279 Model Anti-Rabies Clinics have become operational in the last three years.

 

6. Strengthening the Diagnostic Labs for Rabies Diagnosis: - Across country 14 diagnostic laboratories of government health institutions have been strengthened under the National Rabies Control Program for rabies diagnosis in the selected states/UTs.

 

7. Issues advisories and Communication letters to the states: - Issued advisory to all states by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India (GoI), urging them to classify Human Rabies as a Notifiable Disease under relevant acts. Presently, Human Rabies is notifiable in 23 States/UTs. Additionally, various communications have been sent to the states for implementation of National Rabies Control Program (NRCP) through surveillance, availability of ARV/ARS, training to stakeholders on dogbite and rabies cases management, establishment of Model Anti Rabies Clinics, ensuring Wound washing facility in public hospitals and centres.

 

8. Rabies Free City Imitative: - The Rabies-Free Cities initiative has commenced in a phased manner, targeting Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities for rabies prevention & control. The initiative is being implemented in 15 cities of 6 states and planned for expansion to 114 cities across country.

 

9. Formulation of Committees at National & state Level under National Rabies Control Program: - The National Joint steering committee for Rabies Elimination (NJSC-RE) has been constituted under the chairpersonship of Secretary (HFW)-MoHFW and Co-chairpersonship of Secretary Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying for overall steering the program in the country and to formulate policy, legislations and framework for regulatory mechanism. Similarly, to advise the program division on various technical aspects the National Technical Advisory committee (NTAC) was constituted under the chairpersonship of DGHS. In line with NJSC; state and district-level Joint Steering Committees for Rabies Elimination have been established across states and districts to regular review program progress under NRCP.

 

10. Develop Guidelines and resource documents under National Rabies Control Program: - Various guidelines on rabies prophylaxis and training modules have been developed for medical officers and health workers and disseminated with the states/UTs.

 

11. Training Programs under National Rabies Control Program: - Numerous training sessions for healthcare professionals on proper animal bite management and rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) have been conducted across all States/UTs. Around 1,66,470 medical officers, paramedical staff, and nurses have been trained in dog bite management from 2019 to 2025 (till Feb’25).

 

12. Community Awareness on Dogbite and Rabies: - Community awareness about rabies prevention is being raised through advocacy, communication, and social mobilization campaigns. To create the awareness to the public and healthcare professionals Dog bite protocols, IEC materials, and training videos on the management of animal bite/dog bite cases for medical officers have been created and disseminated across the country. Reference: https://rabiesfreeindia.mohfw.gov.in/iec

 

13. Observance of “World Rabies Day”: - To further promote awareness about rabies, "World Rabies Day" is observed annually on 28^th September at both the national and state levels. During this event, awareness activities on the Do's and Don'ts of handling dogs, dog bite cases, and the importance of rabies vaccination are conducted, particularly in schools for children.

 

14. Created dedicated website for National Rabies Control Program: - A dedicated National Rabies Control Program website has been launched on 12^th March 2024 to enhance surveillance and reporting of animal bites, suspected/probable/confirmed rabies cases/deaths, and vaccination schedules, with a web-based portal currently under development. Reference: https://rabiesfreeindia.mohfw.gov.in/

 

15. Rabies Helpline: - A dedicated Rabies helpline (15400) in Hindi & English is being implemented for five states (Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh, and Assam) in phase one, with plans for subsequent expansion in other states.

 

16. Strengthening Surveillance mechanism under National Rabies Control Program: - The program has enhanced surveillance of rabies cases and animal bites. States are compiling dog bite and rabies death cases on monthly basis and uploading the data to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) Portal.

This information was given by Union Minister of State, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Prof. S.P. Singh Baghel, in a written reply in Lok Sabha on 1^st April, 2025.

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