Officials said persistent gaps in implementation and monitoring have led to growth in stray dog population.
| Photo Credit: BHAWIKA CHHABRA
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi’s (MCD) Standing Committee is set to tighten regulations governing animal birth control (ABC) centres run by NGOs in a meeting scheduled for Thursday.
The move aims to enhance accountability for negligence and lapses in sterilisation and vaccination drives for stray dogs, with possible fund cuts and penalties for poor performers.
Delhi currently has 20 ABC centres managed by NGOs under the MCD, each responsible for achieving 80% sterilisation in their respective zones, as mandated by the Animal Birth Control Rules, 2023. However, officials said persistent gaps in implementation and monitoring have led to continued growth in the stray dog population, despite reported sterilisation drives.
“If even after sterilisation of dogs in a particular area, as claimed by the NGO, the population continues to rise, it indicates a degree of negligence. There must be accountability, and stringent guidelines are needed for this,” a senior official said.
Proposed penalties
Under the proposed measures, the Standing Committee will discuss fund cuts and additional penalties for NGOs that fail to meet sterilisation targets. Each ABC centre is required to maintain detailed registers and submit monthly progress reports, documenting the number of sterilisation and vaccination procedures, verification of procedures through “organ counts”, and records of complications or deaths. Currently, the MCD pays NGOs ₹1,000 per sterilisation and immunisation procedure.
Delayed payments
Administrative approval is also being sought to release ₹13.5 crore earmarked for the ABC programme, as payments have been pending for over six months. The amount covers the target of sterilising 1.35 lakh dogs in the ongoing financial year.
According to MCD data, 31,888 sterilisation procedures were conducted by June this year, for which payments are still awaited. NGOs have flagged operational difficulties due to the non-disbursal of funds since March 2025. Over the past three years, sterilisation numbers have steadily risen – from 59,076 in 2022 to 79,959 in 2023, and 1,31,137 in 2024.
The move to strengthen accountability follows the Supreme Court’s August order addressing the rising stray dog menace. On August 22, the court modified its earlier directions, allowing sterilised and vaccinated stray dogs to be returned to their original localities, provided they are not aggressive or rabies-infected.
Published – October 09, 2025 01:44 am IST
