Canine squads make R-Day safe

NEW DELHI: All eyes are on security agencies and the arrangements made for an incident-free Republic Day. But its time a thought be spared for the four-legged friends of the Delhi Police who are working equally hard to ensure that there is no security breach.
Even as the city settled in the comfort of their homes on Tuesday, the dog squads, comprising of 51 dogs, were hard at work checking all buildings and other premises in the restricted and controlled areas around the parade venue.These dogs include 32 dogs trained especially for detecting explosives and four others who have been trained to catch a scent and then trail it.
The dog team also includes two dogs that have a nose specifically for detecting narcotic substances and two for rescue and relief operations. The rescue dogs are especially useful in detecting the location of survivors in situations like a building''s collapse.
"The dogs on duty are given at least 20 minutes of rest after every hour of work," said deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi) Anita Roy. Since the Republic Day rehearsals began, all the four-legged securitymen with one trainer each, have been under the New Delhi district. Otherwise they come under the fold of the Crime Branch.
According to deputy commissioner of police (crime) Tajindra Luthra, these dogs are imparted training at Tekanpur near Gwalior. "The tracker dogs are given training for nine months and the others undergo a six month training. The dogs include German Shepherds, Labradors and Dobermans," he added.