24 cops to go to Chandigarh to bring back 12 trained dogs for KP
Times of India | 6 January 2024
Kolkata: Around a dozen trainers and another dozen handlers from the Kolkata Police dog squad will spend 72 hours in Chandigarh this weekend, scouting for 11 canines who will eventually serve the city cops for at least six to eight years. For the first time in several years, the Kolkata Police dog squad will procure all the pups in Chandigarh itself after testing them through multiple tasks.These pups will then be trained with the ITBP at the facility.
“In essence, when these pups come to Kolkata, it will be a completely new terrain for them and they will need to get acclimatized to the city. However, this is helping us save time that could have been wasted during transit. We have kept in mind that for the next six to eight months, till training is over for the new recruits, KP has to function with the depleted strength of 28, which might include VIP engagements during Lok Sabha elections,” an officer said.
A lone pup procured in Kolkata will join the new recruits in Chandigarh soon. “It will travel by train on January 7,” said an officer, adding that a tracking dog, currently in training, will return to the city with a couple of trainers.
While cops have kept the option of buying Dobermann and Golden retrievers on their wish list, labradors are likely to dominate the new buys, given the specific requirements of KP and the budget granted.
The police plan to deploy the 12 pups, including the one travelling from Kolkata, in the explosives and narcotics section. “At least two dogs will be deployed in the narcotics section,” an officer said.
“Once all these dogs join duty between June and August, we will have 40 members in the dog squad, the highest ever since the pandemic,” he added.
“We usually retire the dogs after eight to 10 years of active work. They have to be fighting fit and agile to do the job. The dogs need to be taken out and trained across the city to make them aware of actual working conditions. They also need training on roads to strengthen their feet. Those in the explosives and drugs detection units need to get on-ground training under actual conditions,” a dog handler said.
Also for the first time in several years, the dog squad has decided to go for open bidding. “We will induct as many fit pups as possible before moving to the lowest bidder. But we must remember that we are buying some fine dogs here and not a commodity. Each pup, therefore, must meet some criteria before being accepted,” said a detective department officer.
This will be one of the biggest canine recruitments in the past five years. Several dogs in the squad have retired but are on extension due to a dearth of newly trained dogs.
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