Mumbai: Anti-narcotics cell gets its first sniffer dog named Sania

Saina with (to her left) Shivdeep Lande DCP, ANC and (to her right) one of her handlers, Ganesh More

The Mumbai police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC), has finally got a sniffer dog of its own, nearly 30 years after the cell was formed. The ANC had been desperately seeking canines to detect drugs since its formation in 1989. Currently, the department's Bomb Disposal and Detection Squad has dogs and the canines are also used for IPC related cases.

In April 2017, the Crime Branch had contacted several dog breeders to procure canines of a good breed. The ANC had invited applications asking for people interested in handling labradors, and found 21 candidates.

Trained by SSB
On Monday, the ANC received a one-year-old female labrador called Saina. A highly placed officer said, "We bought her when she was six months old and sent her to Dera, Alwar, in Rajasthan, where she was trained for six months at the Shashastra Seema Bal's (SSB) training centre."

Her first training session was from 5 am to 8 am and the second session was from 4 pm to 6 pm. Her two handlers, Ganesh More and Bhagesh Kumbhar, were also trained in Rajasthan. An officer said, "We allow sniffer dogs to serve for 10 years in the department."

Another dog to join
It is learnt two dogs have been planned for ANC, but they received only one. However, sources said they will receive two more dogs. According to a source, getting a team of sniffer dogs is a tough call, because several criteria have to be met by the department, such as ensuring that an officer is always present with the dog round the clock.

Shivdeep Lande, DCP, ANC confirmed that they received one sniffer dog. Currently, the Mumbai police force has 22 Labradors for the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad, and two Doberman Pinschers and three Labradors for IPC related cases.

Also Read: Dog squads from Maharashtra police force felicitated for their service

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