The mute sentinels of Kashmir

By Anil Shorey

THE enrolment of dogs in the Indian Army has been a unique, albeit very successful, 40-year-old venture. Army dogs were pressed into service for the first time in the middle of 1959. With the encouraging performance shown by the first batch, they were to be deployed on a large scale. The Remount and Veterinary Corps (RVC) has been entrusted with the responsibility to procure, enrol, train and deploy Army dogs, which are imparted rigorous training, depending on their breed and aptitude. After that they are placed in one of the numerous categories such as tracker dogs, guard dogs, infantry patrol dogs, mine detective dogs, explosive detective dogs, avalanche rescue dogs and so on. Incidentally, the RVC is also associated with the breeding, rearing, training and upkeep of other Army animal units such as animal transport and mountain artillery units (based on mules), cavalry, desert camel units and military farms, to name a few.

At present, most Army dogs are being deployed on various operational tasks in field or counter insurgency (CI) areas, while others are providing security to VIPs or guarding vital defence installations. Many of the elite Army dog units have excelled in a large number of operational missions wherein numerous dogs along with their handlers have even received awards like Shaurya Chakras, Sena Medals and Chief of the Army Staff’s commendation cards in recognition of their exceptional performance. However, it is ironical that most of their commendable feats are not so well known or publicised.

Coming to specifics, Major K.K. Sharma, the OC of an Army dog unit deployed in the dreaded and rugged Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir, narrates a few incidences wherein Army dogs have done the nation proud. Incidentally, this officer is also a veterinary doctor, which is a mandatory requirement for all RVC officers. His story of Rock, a Labrador, is intriguing. Recently, after tracking a 4-km stretch over a difficult, snow-bound and mountainous terrain, this dog helped the authorities in apprehending four foreign militants and recovering four AK-47 rifles, two radio sets, one improvised explosive device (IED) and 170 rounds of ammunition in the Fatehpur area of the Kashmir valley. Similarly, another Labrador named Rocket was successfully deployed to track and apprehend six heavily armed militants in the jungle of the notorious Marwah region of J&K. The dog had tracked more than 12 km in this operation.

Citing another interesting case, Major Sharma says that on June 9 this year, Indian troops had an encounter with militants near Banihal. Rocket was again pressed into action. After obtaining the scent from a scarf left behind by militants, Rocket soon recovered one universal machine gun (UMG), three AK-47s, two AK-56s and one sniper rifle, two 9 mm pistols, seven radio sets, 11 IEDs, 26 hand grenades, 37 electric detonators and over 1500 rounds of ammunition. "A record of sorts"!, exclaims the proud officer.

The explosive or mine detective dogs are helping road opening parties (ROPs) by providing safe passage to our troops and civilian convoys. On September 16, Rudali, a very playful Labrador, recovered an IED along the roadside in the Surankote area, thereby saving many lives. As it is one of the best sniffers, it has also been used to clear places like helipads, conference halls and routes to be taken by visiting dignitaries and VIPs.

The achievements of five-year-old Rex, a golden Labrador, are also commendable. He was instrumental in the arrest of many militants and the recovery of a large number of arms, ammunition and stores used by militants.

On May 4, it again performed exceptionally well during an avalanche rescue operation, and that too without any formal training in this field. Rex succeeded in locating the bodies of three militants buried under six feet of snow, after which it went on to locate three separate hideouts having an assortment of arms, ammunition, wireless sets, rations and stores. The list of successes achieved by these and other dogs is endless indeed.

According to Major C. M. Desai, OC of another Army dog unit deployed in the Kupwara area, training of Army dogs starts at six months of age and the period of training varies from nine months to one year, depending on the type of training being imparted. The dogs perform quite successfully up to the age of eight to nine years.

When asked about the jawans who handle Army dogs and are known as ‘handlers’, the officer said that as far as possible only one Army handler is detailed for one dog. He usually gets very attached to it and remains responsible for its feeding, discipline, training, deployment and well-being. "Whenever any handler is to be changed, it takes about two weeks for the new handler and the dog to get accustomed to each other", he said.

It is a well-known fact that the association of dog with man is a time-tested, meaningful companionship. Its natural gifts of smell, hearing, ferocity, alacrity and total loyalty towards its master have been successfully exploited by man since time immemorial. During World War I, the Germans used as many as 30,000 dogs, mainly as messenger dogs, casualty detection and guard dogs. During World War-II, the Allied Forces used as many as 2,50,000 dogs. Russia trained dogs to blow up enemy tanks by strapping high explosives on them, which got magnetically activated when the dog ran alongside or beneath a tank. In 1942, the US army also took to dog training in a big way and established the famous K-9 (Canine) Corps.

Dogs are being most gainfully employed in the Indian Army. Specially in the counter insurgency areas of J&K, their importance is being felt by all active units and formations. As a result of their tremendous success all over the state, their demand is constantly on the rise, necessitating the raising, training and deployment of more Army dogs — the mute sentinels and unsung heroes of the Indian Army.