ISLAMABAD: An animal sanctuary in the Pakistani capital claims to be the first in the country to introduce a dedicated trap-neuter-vaccinate-return program to deal with
stray dogs.
The initiative is aimed at using humane methods to manage thousands of free-roaming dogs in Islamabad often seen by authorities and the public as a threat due to their aggressive behavior and them carrying diseases such as rabies.
The Comprehensive Disaster Response Services Benji Project Animal Sanctuary in the city has estimated there are at least 3 million stray dogs in Pakistan, with upward of 50,000 culled each year.
The Global Alliance for Rabies Control has said that more than 80,500 cases of dog bites are reported by basic health units across Pakistan annually, and the World Health Organization estimates that up to 5,000 people die of rabies in the country
every year.
The solution adopted by authorities in most major Pakistani cities is culling of the animals either by shooting them or feeding them poisonous food.
But animal rights groups have advocated vaccination and spaying methods as a better, more humane alternative.
The CDRS Benji Project is testing out one such solution with Pakistan’s first dedicated TNVR program, aimed at reducing both the number of stray dogs and the suffering they have been subjected to for decades, while also making them safer through vaccination, and training to be less aggressive.
“We realized that TNVR is the only way that we can help in reducing, humanely, the number of dogs that roam the streets,” project director Quatrina Hosain told Arab News.
“We have no idea what kind of level of poisoning takes place or shooting takes place ... but one estimate is that it’s upward of 50,000 dogs being killed every year. And that is not the solution,” she said.
She pointed out that the sanctuary’s latest arrivals were 15 puppies brought in from Rawalpindi after their mothers were poisoned.
“It (culling) is cruel and inhumane, because they don’t differentiate between nursing mothers, pregnant dogs, and it is just a terrible thing to do. I believe that nobody wants to kill dogs, but they don’t want the dogs to multiply at the level that they are. So TNVR is the only humane way,” Hosain added.
A single female dog can deliver more than a dozen puppies a year, or more than 80 over her lifetime, according to animal rights NGO Four Paws International. Without loving homes to provide adequate shelter, food, and medical care, puppies and kittens — in Pakistan and countries around the world without adequate care for strays — are frequently left to fend for themselves.
Born under less-than-ideal conditions, most of the pups do not survive their first weeks of life — during the winter months many freeze to death, starve when their mothers are killed by traffic, are attacked and eaten by other animals, and sometimes deliberately killed by humans.
CDRS wants to change this, which is why it set up a dedicated facility just a short drive away from Islamabad’s Gulberg Greens neighborhood.
Staff at the facility said that strays were an integral part of the larger ecosystem, particularly for their scavenger roles in removing leftover food such as carcasses and agricultural and city waste. They also help reduce rat populations.
The project is so far a humble beginning, but sanctuary workers are hopeful for more support from authorities and the public. They noted that Turkey was a good example to follow.
CDRS veterinarian, Dr. Hasnain Raza, said: “TNVR was implemented in Turkey some 20 years back, and it has shown very positive results in the country, so we are trying to implement that model in Pakistan. This is a model facility for showing people that it can work, and it is worth trying.
“But we can’t do it alone. In collaboration with the public sector and the private sector, together, we can make sure that animals are cared for in Pakistan.”
Islamabad animal sanctuary launches stray dog capture, release program
https://arab.news/z37wr
Islamabad animal sanctuary launches stray dog capture, release program
New ‘superfood’ transforms livelihoods in India’s rural east
- Known as fox nut or lotus seed, makhana is rich in protein, dietary fiber, minerals
- Most of the world’s makhana production is in Bihar, one of India’s poorest states
BIHAR: Wading through knee-deep, stagnant water, Mahesh Mukhia plunges his hands into the mud, pulling up handfuls of sludge that he and others toss into a large, partially submerged basket.
After a while, they shake the basket to drain away the water and debris. What remains is makhana — round black seeds that have lately gained popularity as India’s new superfood.
A regional Indian snack, also known as fox nut or lotus seed, makhana is the edible seed of the prickly waterlily. The plant grows in freshwater ponds and wetlands in southern and eastern Asia.
After makhana seeds are handpicked from pond beds, cleaned, and sun-dried, they are roasted at high heat so their hard black shells crack open and release the white, popcorn-like puffed kernels, which are eaten as snacks or used in dishes.
It has long been known for its nutritional value — high in plant-based protein and dietary fiber, the seeds are also rich in minerals and gluten-free — which over the past few years have helped it gain global attention and are transforming farmlands in Bihar, one of India’s poorest states.
“Earlier, people were not researching it but now, after research, makhana’s nutritional values have been highlighted. Now this is a superfood. That’s why demand is growing everywhere,” said Mahesh Mukhia, a farmer in Kapchhahi village in Bihar’s Darbhanga district, whose family has been harvesting the seeds for generations.
“The difference is that my forefathers did farming in a traditional way, but we’ve learnt to do it in a scientific way,” Mukhia told Arab News.
“There is Bhola Paswan Shastri Agricultural College in the neighboring Purnea district. I went there for training. After I started practicing farming the way I learnt, the yield increased by more than 30 percent.”
Makhana farming is highly labor-intensive, starting with the cultivation of water lilies in shallow ponds. The plants require constant monitoring as they are sensitive to water levels and pests.
Harvesting takes place between August and October. Workers pluck the seeds by hand and then dry them under the sun for several days before they can be processed.
The processing and roasting of makhana also require significant effort. The dried seeds are first de-shelled by manually cracking them, followed by multiple rounds of roasting to make them crisp.
Whole families are involved in the production, which has been expanding since 2020, when the state government introduced the Makhana Development Scheme.
Besides training in farming and processing, growers who cultivate fox nut receive $820 per hectare.
“The rate has also gone up. The makhana that we used to sell at 200-300 ($2-$3) rupees per kg is now selling at 1,000 ($12) or 1,500 rupees per kg,” Mukhia said.
“Makhana farmers are now making a profit. Those who are growing makhana are earning well, those who are popping it are also doing well, and those involved in trading are making profits too. We are getting good demand from everywhere. I just received an order for 25 tonnes recently.”
Bihar currently produces over 85 percent of India’s makhana and accounts for most of the world’s production, according to Ministry of Commerce and Industry estimates.
According to reports by the Indian Brand Equity Foundation and the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority, India accounts for roughly 85 to 90 percent of the world’s production.
Farmland where the crop is grown has increased many times over the past decade and can now be compared to the area covering half of New York City.
More than 600,000 people are involved in the makhana industry in Bihar, according to Niraj Kumar Jha, Darbhanga district’s horticulture officer.
“Earlier, we were cultivating 5,000 hectares in the Kosi and Mithlanchal regions. But now it has expanded to 35,000 hectares, and with many supportive schemes, farmers are increasingly encouraged to grow makhana,” he said.
“We are strengthening our marketing channels. We’ll reach the metro cities as well as world markets ... We can see that makhana is growing very popular, not only in India.”
