His case is just one among the 20,000 annual canine-origin human rabies deaths in India, the highest in the world. For a country that has more free-roaming dogs than the population of Australia, India has a poor system for rabies prevention. There is no legal mandate in India for anti-rabies vaccinations, which would shield street dogs from contracting rabies. These expenses should instead be directed toward animal vaccination, which has proved to be around 100 times cheaper and more effective in Asia. The Animal Welfare Board of India was responsible for the ‘animal health’ component of the programme, including vaccination.

Source: The Telegraph May 07, 2019 10:41 UTC