Ahmedabad: The Amdavad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is set to launch a week-long campaign to commemorate World Rabies Day from September 25 to October 2, 2025. The campaign aligns with this year’s global theme, “Act Now: You, Me, Community,” and is a step toward the civic body’s goal of making the city rabies-free by 2030.

Rabies is primarily spread through dog bites, with India accounting for approximately 36% of global rabies deaths. The AMC has adopted a multi-pronged strategy to combat the disease. Ongoing efforts include the allocation of Rs. 8 crore for dog sterilization and vaccination. The civic body has partnered with NGOs such as People for Animals and the Gol Foundation to conduct widespread sterilization and vaccination drives. From the beginning of 2021 through September 2025, a total of 154,402 dogs have been sterilized or vaccinated across the city.

Year-wise Data on Animal Birth Control (ABC) Program:

The number of dogs sterilized and vaccinated each year demonstrates consistent effort:

• 2021-22: 30,360

• 2022-23: 46,471

• 2023-24: 40,206

• 2024-25: 14,461

• 2025-26 (so far): 3,054

Additionally, a mandatory online registration system for pet dogs was initiated in January 2025. To date, over 18,000 pet dogs have been registered via the AMC portal, helping to create a centralized database to track vaccination coverage and ownership.

Despite these achievements, challenges remain, including a high stray dog population of approximately 2.1 lakh and a daily average of 8–10 dog bite complaints. To address this, the AMC plans to increase its sterilization teams, expand vaccination coverage with booster shots for strays, and enforce stricter pet registration regulations, an official note said.