The fact now
stands that rabies has taken a heavy toll
and so far from the sketchy data that we
have been able to collect at least 19 people
have died, with Thoubal district bearing the
brunt. It is no longer just a scare but a
reality and the sooner the authority
concerned acknowledge this the better it
would be for everyone. We regret to inform
our readers that we missed out on the story
of a woman who passed away at RIMS on April
5 after being bitten by a dog but
nevertheless we bring this piece of
information to our readers to keep them
abreast on the latest development of the
situation.
As we reported in the April 6 issue of this
paper, an expert from the Department of
Preventive Medicine in the Institute of
Medical Sciences, Bangalore, Dr Ashwath
Narayan is in town to study the situation.
As we had feared, the expert is understood
to have indicated that the number of deaths
due to dog bites may be higher than the
official recorded data and it will take more
than just some routine work to bring out the
bare facts and present a correct picture of
the spread of the disease.
Rabies has always been there in Manipur, as
some experts have opined, but the point is
not whether it has been there from before or
not but about how suddenly a large number of
dogs have been infected by the disease and
how it has claimed human lives. Pet dogs
attacking their masters on occasions is
something which are not unheard of in
Manipur, but when this becomes the trend, as
it has been in Thoubal and some other parts
of the State, then the time is ready to
sound the alert bell.
There is also a message that is not lost on
us and that is the responsibility of dog
owners and other pet owners. All warm
blooded creatures are potential carriers of
rabies and while it is dogs today it may be
cats tomorrow, especially the alley cats
that we find roaming around scavenging for
food in the neighborhood. Keeping pets is
not only about keeping an animal for
companion or to guard one's property, as
certain breeds of dogs are meant to be, but
it also entails a whole lot of
responsibility on the part of the owners to
ensure that the pets they keep do not pose a
threat to people.
Vaccinating pets on time is something which
has not been heard of in Manipur before
rabies started claiming human casualties, as
is happening right now. The Veterinary and
Animal Husbandry Department is
understandably putting its best foot forward
to immunize pet dogs all over the State but
the question still remains whether their
efforts have had the desired result.
A few days
back we published a story of how dogs have
been slaughtered in Sandang Shenba Maring
village as there was no arrangement to
vaccinate the dogs. The village we are
talking about is not situated in some far
flung place but is only a few kilometers
from Imphal. And this is where a tale hangs.
Pet owners, the Government machinery and of
course local volunteers and voluntary
organizations need to work together to
neutralize the threat posed by rabies at the
moment. For the long term plan, all pet
owners should also be educated on the need
to vaccinate their pets on time. |
