More than 30 lakh people were bitten by dogs in a year, the government gave this information in Parliament

New Delhi: The government on Tuesday told Parliament that about 30.5 lakh cases of dog bites were reported during 2023, in which 286 people died. Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lallan Singh told the Lok Sabha in a written reply to a question that as per the data received in the Integrated Disease Surveillance Program (IDSP) implemented by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, a total of 30,43,339 cases of dog bites were reported during 2023. During this period, 286 people died due to dog bites.

According to the report received from the National Center for Disease Control, the number of anti-rabies vaccines administered during the year 2023 was 46,54,398. The Ministry of Health has been implementing the National Rabies Control Programme from the 12th Five Year Plan in all the States and Union Territories except Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep for the prevention and control of rabies in the country.

Singh said that apart from this, managing the dog population is also one of the important tasks to control dog bite cases. In this regard, many local bodies are implementing animal birth control programmes and anti-rabies vaccination, for which the central government has formulated the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023.

He said that the central government is also providing funds under state assistance for animal disease control. The state government can also use this amount for rabies vaccination. Amidst all this, the figures given by the government are really shocking.