Mounted Police inducts 6 racehorses gifted by RCTC, to take call on retirement of 8
Times of India | 6 February 2024
Kolkata: The six racehorses gifted to Kolkata Mounted Police by Royal Calcutta Turf Club have been inducted into the unit. The horses were have been gifted over the past six months.
The induction of the horses — aged between five and seven years and named Full Volume, Ghosht, Thiago, Insoko, Dubai Bay and Bahuleyan — has taken the total number of horses in the unit to 70, the highest in the past five years.It was in 2018 that KP had 78 horses in its unit. The sanctioned strength is 98.
The numbers can go up to even 72 in the next few weeks as two more horses — Sultan Suleman and Chetak — are likely to be inducted into the unit. “A final decision on these two horses is pending,” said an officer.
Also, there are plans to retire at least eight horses. “A medical board has been formed after three years. It has undertaken medical examination of all horses,” said an officer.
“The basic training of the six horses is over. They are now being put into special training. These race horses were used in full gallops and didn’t face crowd. We have to retrain them on slow trotting. They are also given lessons in side trotting and how to face crowd without getting disturbed. This is a regular exercise as we get five horses inducted each year into the unit. But this time, we may also study their behaviour and induct a couple for sports like equestrian,” added the officer.
The orders for the induction of the eight horses, which are a gift from their owners, were issued last November. Horses that retire from racing due to multiple reasons but are otherwise fit to carry several other responsibilities are gifted to the Mounted Police.
The Mounted Police unit that patrols the 1,000-acre Maidan had last bought 11 horses all the way from north India in 2018. The count had since dwindled from the sanctioned number of 98 to between 60 and 70. “The horses in 2018 were bought from Punjab after selection to meet stringent height and weight specifications. The final negotiations were done in presence of joint CP (organisation) Parul Kush Jain. We managed to get 11 horses then for Rs 10 lakh,” said a senior IPS officer.