Delhi unleashes Rs 900 crore, two-year drive to microchip 10 lakh stray dogs

Delhi stray dog

In a new initiative aimed at tackling public health and animal welfare, the Delhi government has announced a comprehensive plan to microchip approximately 10 lakh street dogs. The ambitious two-year programme, estimated to cost around Rs 900 crore, was finalised at a meeting of the Delhi Animal Welfare Board on Wednesday.

Chaired by Development Minister Kapil Mishra, the meeting brought together senior officials from multiple departments, including the Development Commissioner, the Animal Husbandry Department, the NDMC and the MCD. The plan positions microchipping as the central tool for a broader strategy that encompasses rabies control, a digital vaccination drive and stringent new regulations for pet shops.

According to a report by TOI, the sheer scale of the project necessitates procedures on an estimated 1,370 dogs every single day to meet the two-year target. The microchipping process itself, which involves injecting a chip under the skin with a needle, is relatively quick, taking between two to five minutes per dog and is typically performed while the animal is awake.

Minister Mishra stated that the government’s aim is to ensure Delhi sets a national example in this field, affirming that adequate funds would be provided for rapid progress. He reportedly directed officials to implement a dog census and monitoring system at the earliest to ensure accurate data and stronger future planning.

The broader initiative outlines six key measures. Alongside the mass microchipping, undertaken in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the government will present a Delhi State Action Plan on rabies. This will be supported by new awareness campaigns and digital vaccination monitoring to prevent dog bites. Furthermore, mandatory registration for all pet shops in the national capital will be enforced under a newly constituted special monitoring committee.

The meeting also resolved to form an Animal Market Monitoring Committee and to launch awareness programmes in schools in collaboration with the education department. The establishment of district-level animal welfare committees is also planned.

This push for systematic animal population management aligns with recent directives from the Supreme Court, which has ordered states to frame policies on street dogs. The court has ruled that non-aggressive, non-rabid dogs should be sterilised, immunised and returned to their localities rather than confined. It has also banned the public feeding of stray dogs except in designated spaces.

The government’s current estimate of a million street dogs marks a significant increase from the last available survey, which recorded 1,89,285 dogs across four zones of the erstwhile South Municipal Corporation of Delhi in 2016. The new, multi-faceted approach seeks to address the challenges posed by this growing population with a blend of technology, regulation and public health strategy, aiming to make the capital a model for other states to follow.