Greater Chennai Corporation Makes Pet Microchipping Mandatory

Chennai: The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) passed a resolution in the council meeting held on Thursday which made pet animal microchipping mandatory for pet parents of the region. Microchipping facilities will be available at Corporation, state, university, and private veterinary hospitals. 

According to the GCC, required pet details include name, species, breed, colour, sex, age, vaccination dates, and the ICAR-approved microchip number, as well as the owner’s data (name, address, phone) will be collected. To manage all this data, a dedicated application is in development, which will help authorities keep track of the rabies vaccination data and prevent animal abandonment. 

The Corporation will invite limited e-tenders to develop and help integrate the new software with its existing pet licensing mechanisms and consolidate pet owner details through a dedicated application, which pet parents can access anytime. 

These new measures are being taken to increase pet registration and microchipping. Low participation of residents in the previous registration system has led to the development of the new system; since the launch of the online system in August 2023, 9,151 licenses have been issued. However, a 2023 survey estimated 180,157 street dogs, but according to the GCC, the pet dog population remains unknown.