A Labrador that aided Saranda operations takes part in a CRPF competition at Adityapur on Thursday. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Jamshedpur, Dec. 29: The four-legged maverick commando who took down terror top gun Osama bin Laden in a stealth operation in Pakistan will soon sniff out hardcore Maoists in Jharkhand.

The home ministry today endorsed the CRPF’s request for 25 Belgian Malinois, aka Belgian Shepherds, to aid anti-insurgency operations in the state. The canine squad is expected to touch base by March.

The resilient breed of heroic pooch is believed to have helped the US Navy SEALs in one of the world’s trickiest operations, code-named Neptune Spear, in May this year.

In the spirit of the fictional 007, the mysterious agent (the US military remained tight-lipped on their sniff spy’s breed and gender) had descended alongside 79 two-footed comrades, killed the planet’s most dreaded man and then melted back into the shadows.

CRPF IG (Jharkhand operations) D.K. Pandey confirmed the development and said they were currently juggling with kennel and handler options for the class canines, and might seek corporate help to station the squad somewhere near Jamshedpur.

“The steel city has a functional kennel club and several corporate entities have their own dog squad. So, we plan to approach them for accommodation,” Pandey said.

The Jamshedpur Kennel Club is known to host national-level dog shows every year and has an impressive database of dog handlers.

The IG said the nemesis of Maoists was currently being trained at the Dog Breeding and Training Centre of CRPF in Taralu village, on the outskirts of Bangalore.

The canine squad will be used in patrolling in sensitive pockets. They are being trained to sniff out explosives, be it a landmine or a human bomb. The Belgian breed is known for its agility (it runs twice as fast as humans), intelligence and endurance and expected to be a force multiplier in CRPF operations. They can be strapped to their handler and lowered from a hovering chopper to carry out mission in otherwise inaccessible forests.

“The greatest advantage is that these dogs are trained to sense ambush and will help protect our troopers during night operations,” the IG said.

Commanding officer of CRPF’s 197th Battalion Lal Chand Yadav, who supervised Operation Monsoon in Saranda, said dogs were the best companions in difficult terrain. “We used six sniffer and six trackers dogs during the mission. They helped us identify IEDs and landmines, and nab rebels hiding among villagers,” he said.

Meanwhile, the CRPF’s inter-battalion dog competition concluded in Adityapur today. The CRPF’s terrific 12 from Chakradharpur, Khunti, Mosaboni, Seraikela, Chaibasa and Adityapur ranges took part in agility trials. The canines were trained at the National Dog Training Centre in Tekanpur, Madhya Pradesh.

Subedar Major Ayush Kumar of Chaibasa range said they had worked with Labradors and German Shepherds and were looking forward to joining forces with the friendly and hard-working Belgian Malinois.