THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chempaka Ramanthura at Pulluvila in Karinkulam panchayat had triggered heated debates on the dog menace after an elderly woman, Siluvamma, was mauled to death by stray dogs in August. Almost a month after the incident, the issues remain unsolved. The officials have not been able to spay and neuter most dogs or start waste management programmes here.
"Talking about the positives, around two per cent of the total number of houses in Karimkulam panchayat which own pet dogs have got licence for their dogs. The peaceful dogs that hang around houses were spayed and neutered," says panchayat vice-president E. Kristu Dasi. However, the aggressive stray dog packs still terrorise the area and several bites that happen here continue to make headlines in local tabloids.
"Effective waste management is not possible here as we have densely packed houses, located in low-lying areas which are prone to the wrath of sea. So we don't have space to construct aerobic bin and biogas plants," said G. Princimol, ward member of Chempaka Ramanthura ward. Of the 18 wards in Karimkulam, only five are non-coastal agricultural where a centralised waste management was possible. However, over the years, they became densely populated after beach dwellers who work in Gulf countries started acquiring land and building villas.
