In raid on Red fort, Belgian Malinois dies of bee attack

BIJAPUR: A four-legged CRPF soldier, adept at taking the sting out of Maoist attack plans with its infantry patrolling, explosive detection and assault skills and manoeuvres, fell to a sting-assault by 200 honeybees to attain martyrhood in the biggest-ever anti-Naxal operation.

K9 Rolo, a handsome Belgian Malinois who got past its second birthday only last month, was part of the 21-day operation by the CRPF and Chhattisgarh police at Karreguttalu Hills on Chhattisgarh-Telangana border. Trained at the CRPF dog breeding and training school (DBTS), Bengaluru, it was drafted into anti-Naxal duties in CRPF 228th battalion in April 2024.

During the special operation at KGH, while Rolo and other CRPF troops were in the midst of an intensive search operation, a swarm of bees waylaid the dog, embedding scores of stings into his otherwise combat-trained body.

Handlers of the K9 soldier moved fast, shielding it with a polythene sheet to cut off the bee attack. Unfortunately, this did not help as the bees managed to sneak inside the cover to resume their stinging assault with added force.

Rolo, by then overwhelmed with pain and irritation, went berserk and shook the cover off, making itself vulnerable to even more bites. By the end of the ordeal, it had around 200 bee stings inside him, which rendered it unconscious. An immediate medical evacuation was performed by its human co-soldiers. Emergency treatment was administered by the handlers. However, Rolo succumbed to the pain and suffering while still being evacuated.

K9 was declared ‘brought dead’ by the veterinary doctor. The canine martyr laid its life being a loyal soldier and assisting CRPF in busting hideouts and sniffing out explosives dumps dotting KG Hills. K9 Rolo’s sacrifice received a fitting tribute; it was laid to rest with a guard of honour and shall now be posthumously awarded a commendation disk by CRPF director general.