Border Security Force’s nearly 40 India-bred dogs- Rampur Hounds and Mudhol Hounds- will participate in the National Unity Day Parade on October 31
NEW DELHI: Back in 2020, when the police and paramilitary forces heavily depended on foreign dog breeds like German Shepherd, Labrador Retriever and Belgian Malinois etc for their dog squads, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had sought to challenge status quo, suggesting the equally agile and more resilient ‘desi’ dog breeds as an ‘atmanirbhar’ alternative.Five years later, the PM will witness the success of his proposed experiment, in person. A contingent made up exclusively of Indian breed dogs like ‘Mudhol Hound’ and ‘Rampur Hound’ — trained by the BSF and now serving as force-multipliers on the eastern and border border, in anti-Naxal operations and narcotics detection — will proudly march in his presence during the Rashtriya Ekta Diwas parade on October 31, at Ekta Nagar in Narmada district of Gujarat. Ekta Nagar is home to Iron Man Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s towering statue, the tallest in the world at 182 metres.This year being the 150th birth centenary of Sardar Patel, the Rashtriya Ekta Diwas celebrations will include a grand parade by the Central armed police forces (CAPFs), including their dog squads, cavalry and camel contingents, and the state police forces. Prime Minister Modi, the guest of honour, will receive the ceremonial salute from the five CRPF Shaurya Chakra awardees as well as the 16 BSF personnel recently honoured with gallantry medals for their valour in Operation Sindoor. Also thrown in are a cultural show featuring grand performances by NCC cadets and school bands; an air show; motorcycle stunts; and tableaux of different states celebrating ‘Unity in Diversity’, BSF DG Daljit Singh Chawdhary shared at a press conference here on Friday.The Guard of Honor to be presented to the PM will be led by a female officer. Women personnel of CISF and CRPF will demonstrate their martial arts and unarmed combat skills.The ‘desi’ breed dogs contingent will be led by female BSF Mudhol Hound ‘Riya’ — conferred the ‘Best Dog’ title at the 2024 All Indian Police Duty meet in Lucknow, after beating 116 foreign breed competitors. Indigenous breeds Rampur Hound and Mudhol Hound will also demonstrate their versatile skills like climbing 18 ft wall and intercepting terrorists or intruders.BSF commandant (veterinary medicine) Sandeep Gupta shared that the force had taken a cue from PM’s ‘Mann ki Baat’ programme and started researching ‘desi’ breeds; they were found better adapted to Indian weather, besides being resilient and agile. “We limited ourselves to studying the parent generation of breeds like Mudhol Hound and Rampur Hound. A breeding programme was started and the second generation was introduced to human socialisation and foundational training…it was only with the third generation that we started methodical training,” he said.Chawdhary on Friday said the force has trained 150 Indian breed dogs so far and deployed them “from Thar to Tawang”.
