With the threat of terrorism looming large over the National Capital, the Delhi Police has decided to strengthen its dog squad. It has requisitioned the services of training schools for acquiring well-trained 35 canines for its existing fleet.
The Border Security Force’s (BSF) Tekanpur Centre in Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police’s (ITBP) Centre at Panchkula (Haryana) are the two locations where pedigreed dogs are trained in anti-sabotage activities.
Skilled dogs, trained by various security forces, will be added to the existing fleet of the city’s canine squad, especially to meet the challenges of terrorism.
These sniffer dogs are considered handy for the law enforcing agencies to detect explosives.
"Our dog squad is a force multiplier as these animals can sniff out any suspicious object," a police officer said. The Delhi Police requires 35 dogs for its new-look squad as the security needs are increasing with time, he added.
The Delhi Police's dog squad had 105 dogs during the Commonwealth games in 2010. The count had gone up as dogs were sought from different security forces on loan to meet the security challenges of the mega sporting event. The canines were returned to the parent forces after 2010 Delhi Games. Since then, the Delhi Police has been scouting for well-trained dogs.
With a tender to be floated to get 35 more for the existing squad; the construction of a new kennel started about a month back in the South-East district. "The proposal is to get 35 more dogs. The tender for which is likely to be floated in the coming days," said a police official. Recently, the squad procured five trained labradors from the Army Veterinary Course (AVC) for detecting explosives.
"Currently, the squad has 60 dogs — out of which 51 are sniffers and nine are trackers. The squad has four breeds – labradors, Dobermann, German Shepherds and Cocker Spaniels. The police dog squad has also been a major help in terms of solving cases," said an officer posted with the dog squad.