The dog squad performs during the police duty meet in Ranchi on Wednesday. Picture by Hardeep Singh

The men in uniform were on their toes in Ranchi on Wednesday, not for crime-busting but for a grey cells exam.

The occasion was a two-day range-level police duty meet at Police Lines on Kanke Road hosted by the crime investigation department.

In the meet declared open by South Chotanagpur range DIG Praveen Kumar, 30 officers from Ranchi, Khunti, Lohardaga, Gumla and Simdega were tested on their scientific investigation skills.

Reactions to the test varied. Inspector T.N. Singh of Mandar police station was unhappy. “I am not satisfied with my performance. I was not prepared as we were informed about the event only two days ago,” Singh, who has 30 years of experience, said.

A young sub-inspector agreed he would have also performed better if given time to prepare. “I was asked about the difference between a pistol and a revolver and do DNA profiling,” he said.

Being a part of the force, the dog squad too turned up for the test. Tracker and sniffer dogs retrieved hidden objects and refused food offered by strangers.

Convener Dhirendra Prasad, also a fingerprint expert of the crime investigation department, said those chosen in the range-level contest will qualify for the state-level meet.