On Monday (September 5), Abhirami, a 12-year-old girl from Lenny in pathanamthitta district, India, died while being treated for a stray dog bite at Kottayam Medical School.
On August 24, abirami was out shopping for milk when a stray dog bit her arm, legs and eyes near her home. She received ventilator support but did not survive even after three doses of rabies vaccination.
In 2022, 20 people in Kerala were bitten to death by dog bites
The 12-year-old girl is the seventh victim of stray dog attacks in Kerala in the past four months.
Of the 7 victims, 6 died despite being vaccinated against rabies.
According to Health Minister Veena George, a total of 20 people in Kerala have died from rabies infections so far this year.
2. The quality of vaccines has received attention
Despite rabies vaccinations, recent rabies deaths have raised questions about the effectiveness and quality of vaccines.
Kerala's health minister also wrote to the federal health minister, Mansukh Mandaviya, urging him to test the quality of the state's existing anti-rabies vaccines.
In a letter to the health minister, she said: "The Central Pharmaceutical Laboratory is responsible for ensuring the quality of the vaccine and issuing certificates. Five people who recently died from dog bites were vaccinated with a central pharmaceutical laboratory certificate. Despite being vaccinated, they died, which raised public concerns."
3. The growing problem of stray dogs in Kerala
The recent rabies deaths have raised concerns once again about the increased threat of stray dogs in the state.
On Monday (September 5), India's Supreme Court agreed to hold a hearing on the growing threat of stray dogs in Kerala.
Lawyer VK Biju, who represented the petitioner, told the Supreme Court that Kerala has reported 1 million dog bite cases in the past 5 years.
The lawyer appealed: "Daily wage workers, schoolchildren, women, they are all attacked. This is a very serious problem, particularly affecting the poor. ”
4) There are nearly 300,000 stray dogs in Kerala
In 2016, the Supreme Court set up a commission led by jagan, a former Kerala High Court judge, to handle complaints related to dog bites and determine compensation for victims.
As of September 5, 2022, the three-member committee has received 5,191 applications for compensation for injuries caused by stray dog attacks or accidents caused by them.
A survey by India's livestock department shows that there are about 280,000 stray dogs in Kerala.
