Maharashtra Govt Forms 12-Member Committee To Study Pigeon Feeding & Public Health Impact

Mumbai: The state committee on pigeon feeding has been mandated to work not just on health-related issues, but it will also decide whether it is possible to allow controlled feeding, identify the locations if it's possible and draft rules and regulations for it.

About The 12-Member Committee

The 12-member committee, to be headed by Dr Vijay Kandewad, joint director (II) of the state public health department, comprises seven members from medical and health, three from animal welfare and one each from the urban development and the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS).

The formation of the committee has been made on the basis of the three writ petitions that came before the Bombay High Court, which directed the state government on August 13 to appoint a committee of experts on the impact of the pigeon on public health.

Members Of The Committee

The members of the committee are Jitendra Bhople, director of the state town planning department, Kishor Rithe, director of the BHNS, Dr Pradeep Deshmukh, Dean and head of the department of community medicine at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (Nagpur), Dr Shivaji Pawar, deputy director of animal husbandry and member secretary of Maharashtra Animal Welfare Board, Dr SK Dutta, secretary of the Animal Welfare Board (India), Dr Sujit Ranjan (Pulmonology), Dr Ameeta Athawale, Pulmonologist, working with the BMC, Dr Manisha Madkaikar, director of ICSR Mumbai, Dr RJ Zende, professor in veterinary science, Dr Shilpa Patil, professor of microbiology in Grant Medical College and Daksha Shah, executive medical officer, BMC.

The committee can have the services of other members if required, says the government resolution (GR) issued by the urban development department on Friday. The committee has been asked to submit its report within a month.