AGARTALA, Dec 27: Discarded domestic items can also be utilised to build animal's shelter house -- this has been transformed into a reality when Assam's Abhijit Dowarah has prepared makeshift kennels for stray dogs.
Dowarah, who had started a small shop after completing his graduation from Bir Lachit Bor Phukan College in Sivasagar, has so far set up five unused television sets at Phukan Nagar to shelter street dogs on the road side of his locality.
"This was done as I wanted to make sure the stray dogs do not suffer out in the cold or rain or under any hostile weather. So far, I have set up five such kennels and readied twelve more," Dowarah said.
He said : "Though my family is very poor, I am not taking any financial help from anyone or from the government. I am doing this on my own as I love animals."
The 32-year-old youth has also developed some makeshift sprayer tools by using bamboo and household items. The locals know Dowarah as an "innovator" who develops scrap stuff into utility items.
Earlier, he shaped a certain type of torch for the safety of the women and a "gadget" for hand sanitisation during the pandemic."During the past five years, I have created some 50 utility items from scraps and trash material. So, people don't throw away old and unused material but give them to me," Dowarah said adding that he had submitted papers about his creations to the IIT Guwahati.
He said : "I have been noticing the street dogs are suffering from various odds and weather conditions. After collecting some unused television sets, I removed the unwanted parts and accessories from the TV sets. With the remaining frame, I designed suitable homes for the street dogs to stay and titled them as "BAATOR GHOR" (street home)."
"But then, if I put those "BAATOR GHOR" in the roadside, then people would misunderstand them as waste materials. So I came up with the idea of painting these boxes. I used two colours - yellow (to make it visible from a long distance) and green (to give it a shade of nature).
"For the comfort of the dogs sacks were laid on each kennel's floor and cotton cloths were spread out on it. "I ventured out several nights to see how the dogs live and used the "BAATOR GHOR". I observed for a few days and the experiment turned out to be a success. I was more than happy !!
In his post on social media, he said : "I request you all to build such BAATOR GHOR, write your name and place them in suitable place alongside the streets. Also don't forget to upload pictures along with the dogs. Your one big step can influence many."
Sivasagar Additional District Magistrate Al Azhar Ali appreciating Dowarah's creations said that this is a wonderful initiative, everyone must extend their support and cooperate with him. - IANS
