Nepal Police Canine Operation Division
1. Background:
Dog service in Nepal Police was started by sending some police officers to Malaysia for dog training in 2026 BS. It was then when four trained dogs were brought from the aforementioned country.
This service was established in 2032 BS as "Police Dog Section" with deputation of 10 staffs.
Owing to its achievements and need in the changing scenario, the Section was upgraded into Central Police Dog Training School in 2047 BS alongside Regional Dog Section in all the five development regions. Today, dog service is in operation in Pokhara of Western Region , Dharan of Eastern Region, Hetauda of Central Region and Kohalpur of Mid –Western Region.
2. Objectives:
- To prepare skilled manpower (handlers and trainers)
- To identify facts associated with crime and criminals, track down criminals and narrow down the horizon of investigation.
- To search arms and explosives to avoid human and collateral losses.
- To search drugs in order to help control drug trafficking.
- To provide assistance for rescue at times of natural disasters and find out persons kept concealed.
- To produce pedigree dogs.
- To train the pedigree dogs.
- To help augment public contact of the police.
3. Trainings run by the school at present:
- Dog Handling- Basic Training
- Arms and Explosives Identification Dog Training
- Tracker Dog Training
- Search and Rescue Dog Training
- Drugs Identification Dog Training
- Veterinary Orientation Training
4. Areas and bases for use of dogs:
- Hunt for criminals: The use of dogs in crimes like murder, burglary, theft and abduction is for their ability to identify the persons with similar odor after sniffing the evidences and footprints left behind at the crime scene. For this, the site should be kept intact with the odorous evidences and the operation should be conducted within 24 hours of the incident of crime. Dogs used in such tasks are known as 'Tracker Dogs'.
- Search of arms and explosives: Dogs are used to check and minimize the losses of human and public properties by identifying the arms and explosives (before their activation). For this, dogs are mobilized to sniff around the dwellings of national and international VIPs, vehicles used by them, roads, venue of events, office buildings and other important locations. This has proved to be reliable and effective means to avoid possible casualties. The dogs used in such tasks are known as 'Bomb Dogs'. They can easily identify such objects by sniffing the odor.
- Search of drugs: Dogs are deployed to control trafficking, sales, distribution, storage and use of drugs. To curb this illicit trade, dogs are instructed to sniff around different passages and stations in identified areas. Remarkable achievements have been made by the use of dogs. Sniffer dogs are used for this purpose.
- Search at times of natural disasters: Rescue dogs are mobilized to look for absconding or buried people during or aftermath of natural disasters. Likewise, these rescue dogs are also used to figure out the persons who are kept concealed at unknown places when abducted by criminal groups.
5. Use of dogs in the international airport(Kathmandu) and regional airport(Biratnagar)
- The dog service is functioning round-the-clock (24x7) in both international and regional airports for the security of the passengers as well as to control trafficking of illegal goods.
6. Number and deployment of dogs in Nepal Police:
A Nepal Police boasts a total of 78 dogs in the following offices:
- Central Police Dog Training School (Including International Airport) 50
- Dog Section, No. 1 State Police Office, Dharan (Including Biratnagar Airport) 8
- Dog Section, No. 3 State Police Office, Hetauda 6
- Dog Section, No. 4 State Police Office, Pokhara 8
- Dog Section, No. 6 State Police Office, Kohalpur 6
7. Dogs in crime investigation:
- Tracking : Every creative including human being possess a peculiar scent or odor. The dogs are used in crimes like murder, burglary, theft and abduction for their unusual ability to identify the persons with similar odor after sniffing the evidences and footprints left behind at the crime scene. The dogs identify criminals by matching given scent with the criminals’ body scent. Every individual discharges a lot of tiny scent particles to air or ground and the dogs by using their sniffing power detect the path taken by the criminals after committing crimes .
- Searching : The dogs search for those items concealed by the criminals by sniffing their body scent and matching it to the items in hiding.
- Identification : It is process of detecting one individual among many individuals by providing the person’s belonging(s) to the sniffer dog .
Dogs are effective in following circumstances :
- If the crime scene is safe
- If the suspect is arrested
- If the physical proof(s) remain undisturbed (by human factors)
- If the crime scene is unperturbed by heat, wind or rain
- If the incident is timely reported ( within 24 hours)
- If the footprint is kept safe at the scene
Limitations of dogs:
- Time constraints ( If delayed, more than 24 hours)
- If the physical proof(s) are affected by human and other external factors
- If the scent liberated by criminals is disappeared
- Means of transportation used by criminals.
- Crossing of river by criminal
- Mixing or masking of scent
Conditions likely for bad results for Tracker Dogs:
- If the physical proof is messed up by people other than culprit.
- Any act of misinformation by victim due to lack of awareness.
- Misuse of dogs trade owing to public pressure.
- The dogs sniffing instruments which are used by people other than criminal.
- Inefficiency of handlers.
8. Achievements:
Followings are some success stories made by police dogs:
- In 2040 BS, Shova Shrestha who was at largeafter murdering her uncle, aunt and a cousin sister with a 'khukuri' knife while they were asleep in a corn field in Charikot, was apprehended by the help of a dog.
- On 18 Falgun 2053, a dog helped arrest a runaway convict who had killed a 60 year old woman in Budhanilkantha squeezing her throat.
- On 7 Asar 2054, a person after being indicated by a dog confessed his crime. The culprit had murdered three persons from Ghuskan-1, Sindhupalchowk, by lynching their throats with a 'khukuri' while asleep.
- On 8 Poush 2058, a dog helped arrest at large convicts involved in the murder of Prithvi Bahadur Thapa and Jas Bahadur Rai, residents of Panchkanya-3, Sunsari.
- On 9 Poush 2062, dogs averted a huge irreparable casualty by identifying around 20 kilograms of explosives kept under earth at the entrance of the stadium in Pokhara which was ready for detonated by using electrical wires, targeted to VIPs.
- The corpse of journalist Birendra Shah, murdered while missing after abduction by an unidentified outfit on 18 Ashwin 2064 was identified by dogs on 23 Kartik 2064 buried in the eastern jungle of Tagiya Basti, Dumarwana-7, Bara.
- On 7 Mangsir 2064, sniffer dogs detected arms in the cargate vehicle in the premises of Soaltee Hotel, in which former American President Jimmy Carter was about to board on
- On 6 Poush 2065, a significant amount of drugs was found in Hotel Viya, Bindhyabasini Guest House, Supreme Guest House and Hotel Patala in Thamel while a search was carried out by using dogs.
- In 2067, a dog named Roni helped arrest convicts involved in the murder of Dwarika Khanal, a resident of Gonagabu, Kathmandu.
- In 2070 , Roni helped arrest convicts involved in the murder of Sanukaji Tamang, a resident of Matathirtha, Thankot.
- In 2071 , a dog named Jwala helped arrest a convict named Rammani Regmi who had murdered Arjun Prasad Regmi along the latter’s three family members in Bhotewadar in Lamjung.
- In 2073, A dog named "Bhunti" helped arrest a convict named Sanjay Bharati who had murdered Sita Khan along the latter's three family members in Ranagaun in Salyan.
9. Future plans of Dog School: Upgrading of Central Police Dog Training School, Central Police Canine Training and Breeding Directorate by expanding dog services to zonal police units, district police units, vital installments (VVIP residences and offices, jail, parliament building, national administrative center of Singhadurbar, airports etc) and international borders in near future.
An appeal to the general public
- Give priority to investigation by keeping the crime scene safe for the dogs to detect criminals
- Help keep our society healthy by bringing drug dealers to justice by allowing a congenial environment for dogs to investigate the suspects drug trafficking.
- Help create an environment for by timely notification to the police where dogs can avert human and collateral losses by detecting arms and ammunitions.
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मिति २०७१।०६।०५ गते पोखरा १४ चउथे कास्कीमा डग द्धारा चेकजाच गर्ने क्रममा ला.औ.गाजा ११०० ग्राम बरामद।