MCD okays penalties for NGOs over rabies cases

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Tuesday approved a policy that introduces steep penalties on NGOs running Animal Birth Control (ABC) centres if rabies cases or failed sterilisations leading to new stray dog births are reported within their allotted areas ~ in what experts said may lead to legal disputes and corruption for want of a proper tracking mechanism.

- Paras Singh

The policy preamble, cleared alongside an expenditure sanction of ₹13.5 crore for payments to NGOs, states: “In case of rabies-related casualty in allotted area, 10% of the annual amount payable to the ABC Centre will be deducted with each such casualty; and 2% of annual payment will be deducted in case of new birth in sterilised dogs for each birth.”

MCD aims to sterilise around 135,000 dogs between April 2025 and February 2026, for which the ₹13.5-crore outlay was approved.

This amount includes long-pending dues of ₹4.25 crore to 19 NGOs for sterilisation work conducted between March and June this year. The corporation currently pays between ₹900 and ₹1,000 per dog for sterilisation and immunisation.