Goa has intensified rabies control and surveillance along its Karnataka border after around 40 cases were reported in Karwar and Ankola over the past six months, prompting authorities to coordinate interventions on both sides of the boundary.
Mission Rabies director (education) Dr Murugan Appupillai said the cases in the two Karnataka areas had led officials to extend monitoring beyond Goa. Ankola is about 70 km from the Goa border, while Karwar is also being closely watched as part of the response.
The Karnataka-side programme is expected to include dog sterilisation, vaccination and public awareness drives. Officials are also planning closer coordination and surveillance between the two states to reduce the risk of the virus entering Goa through border areas.
The response is linked to Goa’s effort to maintain its status as India’s first 100% rabies-controlled state. The state’s strategy has involved interventions aimed at controlling the dog population, increasing vaccination coverage and monitoring suspected cases.
A recent campaign in Goa sterilised around 900 dogs, according to the report. No rabies was detected during that drive. Another sterilisation campaign is expected to begin in about a month, indicating that the state’s control programme will continue alongside the heightened border vigilance.
The cross-border approach reflects the operational challenge of controlling a disease in areas where people, animals and vehicles move across administrative boundaries. While Goa’s interventions are carried out within the state, cases in neighbouring Karnataka have prompted authorities to widen surveillance around the border rather than rely only on internal monitoring.
For residents in border areas, the measures will involve vaccination and sterilisation activity, awareness efforts and closer observation of possible rabies cases. The report does not provide details of the number of dogs scheduled for vaccination in Karnataka, the agencies responsible for each intervention or the precise locations where the next drives will be conducted.
Authorities are expected to continue coordination between Goa and Karnataka as the border surveillance measures are implemented. Goa’s next sterilisation drive is expected in approximately one month, while vaccination, awareness and monitoring activities in the neighbouring Karnataka areas form part of the immediate response to the reported cases.
