In a first, ITBP inducts women constables as dog handlers in its K-9 cadre

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 2

In a first, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force (ITBP) has inducted women personnel for the training, handling and deployment of dogs for undertaking security related duties in counter-insurgency and anti-naxal environment.

The first batch of eight women K-9 handlers have joined ITBP’s National Training Center for dogs, which is co-located with the force’s Basic Training Center (BTC) at Bhanu near Chandigarh.

The dogs being trained by them are of the Malinois breed that secure ITBP troops in anti-naxal operations and also protect civilians during important public events by carrying out anti-sabotage checks.

With this, ITBP has become the first Central Armed Police Force under the Ministry of Home Affairs to train and induct women dog handlers. The handler and the dog is placed at the vanguard of area domination patrols in the counter-insurgency grid to provide early warning against potential threats.

“This will go a long way in breaking barriers, changing mindsets and proving that there is absolutely no job in the forces that women cannot do. This will open up additional avenues for women in the forces, Ishwar Singh Duhan, Inspector General heading the BTC, said.

“A woman would be more successful in the K-9 field due to her motherly instincts and feeling of empathy, which would make her understand the nuances of her dog and train him better. The pups are more receptive to the feminine voice as a dog processes commands based on the sound frequency alone and therefore the female’s voice frequency will enhance trainability,” Duhan said.

The Malinois pups are around three months old and will now undergo what in service parlance is called “marying up,” where a pup will be imprinted with positive reinforcement methods to develop a close bond  with his handler.

Later, the dogs and their handlers will undergo the tactical basic obedience training, followed by ITBP’s patented dual purpose dog training. Thereafter, the dogs will be deployed with K-9 teams as patrol explosive detection dogs.

The ITBP, which is mandated with the peacetime management of the border with China along the Himalayas, began inducting women into its ranks over a decade ago. Initially they were recruited as general duty constables, but recently several other trades and cadres have been opened up for them. For the first time this year, women were recruited by the ITBP as cooks, gardeners, tailors, water carriers, cleaners and cobbler.