Maharashtra’s first police dog training centre to come up at Baramati
The dog training centre in Baramati will be located near the additional SP’s office due to the police force’s diverse objectives of tackling terrorism and Naxalism, and detecting crime among others
The state will be setting up the first state-of-the-art dog training centre for Maharashtra police spread over 20-acre of land at Baramati at a cost of Rs50 crore. The dog training centre will be located near the additional SP’s office due to the police force’s diverse objectives of tackling terrorism and Naxalism, and detecting crime among others.
Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said, “Dog squads play an important role in terms of protection. Trained dogs work well to deal with incidents such as thefts, bomb blasts, arrival of VIPs for events, anti-Naxal operations and sniffing RDX. The dog training centre in Baramati will have all the necessary facilities. A spacious dog training centre worth about Rs50 crore will be set up on 20-acre land which has already been identified and is vacant.”
“You will be awestruck when you see the institute yourself. It will be on the lines of a horse stable. Today, many changes are being seen in different fields especially policing, where sniffer dogs play a very important role in the protection of human lives,” Pawar said.
Currently, the sole dog training centre in Maharashtra is located at the Shivajinagar police headquarters; it came into existence in 1965 as part of the state CID. Regular and refresher dog training courses are organised by the chief dog master under the supervision of the additional superintendent of police. There are four dog trainers of the rank of head constable (H.C.) and attendants working under the chief dog master. Presently, there are 92 dog units across districts and commissionerates in the state. According to the state CID, each dog unit is helmed by an officer of the rank of PSI. There is an initial training period of six months. However, this duration largely depends on the ability of the dog and the training imparted.
The state CID is also looking for land for the proposed state-of-the-art dog training centre in Pune. The current dog training facility houses only 26 dogs. Moreover, it does not have a residential facility for dog handlers. In 2013, the state government had allotted 13-acre land at Daund but the CID could not acquire the land due to its distance from Pune which had legal ramifications. In 2020, the state government provided a 5-acre land parcel at Wadachiwadi near Kondhwa. Since it was in the immediate vicinity of a police firing range, a feasibility study of the land and site was carried out by the CID wherein it was revealed that constant firing at the range would be a source of disturbance for dog training.