BMC Introduces QR-Coded Reflective Collars to Track Stray Dogs in Mumbai
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has introduced reflective collars integrated with QR tags for stray dogs across Mumbai to enable the digital tracking of vaccinated and sterilised community animals. The civic initiative forms part of the municipal corporation's plan to make the city rabies-free by 2030.
The project is being executed in collaboration with the Ridlan AI Foundation’s PawFriend.in, led by social entrepreneur Akshay Ridlan. Under the initiative, PawFriend.in is providing reflective collars fitted with unique QR codes linked to digital records containing each animal's rabies vaccination history, sterilisation status, and relevant medical details.
The collaboration was officially announced on Thursday in the presence of Deputy Municipal Commissioner Vinayak Vispute, Dr. Akbar Pathan of the Veterinary Health Department, and Akshay Ridlan. The step follows recent directives from the Supreme Court aimed at strengthening stray dog management, animal birth control, and anti-rabies measures across the city.
Civic officials noted that vaccinated dogs were previously identified using coloured ink or other temporary markings, which tended to fade or disappear quickly, creating challenges for long-term monitoring. The QR-enabled collars are designed to provide a more durable and systematic tracking system.
The new identification framework will allow municipal field teams and citizens to quickly check whether a dog has already undergone sterilisation or vaccination. This is expected to prevent repeated interventions, reduce duplication of efforts, and streamline the use of public resources.
According to the civic body, the system will help build a centralised, continuously updated digital registry of community dogs. The database is intended to support evidence-based planning, improve field monitoring, and facilitate closer coordination between municipal authorities, veterinary staff, and animal welfare organisations.
Ridlan stated that the project is focused on creating reliable digital infrastructure to track vaccinations and sterilisation, ultimately supporting public health and animal welfare interventions across the city.
