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Thiruvananthapuram: Unclean neighbourhood has stray dogs multiply

The densely-packed fishermen settlements have up to five to seven people living in one bed room- hall-kitchen houses.

Thiruvananthapuram: A maze of narrow alleys between closely packed tiny houses leads to the house of Joseclin, 47, who was mauled to death on Monday. A further walk through the maze will lead one to the beach where he lost his life.

The densely-packed fishermen settlements have up to five to seven people living in one bed room- hall-kitchen houses. Joseclin was the only breadwinner in the family of four. Like their neighbours, they do not have a toilet. They either have to bank on public toilets or defecate on the beach. Garbage disposal options are limited to large dumps on the beach that attract stray dogs.

“Ten days back, our neighbour George, 40, was bitten and had to be taken to Medical College in an ambulance. On the same day, a sick person Selvi was mauled.,” said Mariamma Eshow, a local resident who was present at the funeral of Joseclin.

Almost all the women who suffered dog bites in the past eight months were attacked while going to dump waste. Children are attacked while going for defecation in the beach. Around 473 people were bitten by the dogs in a year as per the claims of local activists.

Pulluvila Community Health Centre (CHC) treats between 20-23 dog bite cases. Several people seek treatment at Neyyatinkara General Hospital also.

As per the local residents who staged a protest at Pulluvila junction, there have been incidents of dogs from outside the area being released to the beaches around Adimalathura. “On two occasions, we had intercepted vans that came with stray dogs,” they said. The agitations at Pulluvila sprawling around 2.5 sq km was being coordinated by local parish priest Jerme Alphonse.

( Source : Deccan Chronicle. )
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