Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis recently announced that retired state police dogs would no longer be put up for external adoption after 10 years of service. He reportedly said that dogs will continue to be with their long-term police handlers and the Home Department will take care of expenses in their post-retirement phase. Police dogs should not be made to suffer at the time of retirement. Earlier service dogs which would retire after 10 years of service would be put up for external adoption. This practice raised issues regarding the emotional and psychological health of these dogs post separation, many of whom experienced trauma or refused food in their new environment. These dogs will now have the opportunity to relish full-time state-backed care post retirement by ensuring they enjoy the comfort of familiar surroundings after completing their service. For years, they have worked silently alongside the police force, sniffing out explosives, detecting narcotics, searching luggage, tracking suspects and helping investigators apprehend criminals. This policy needs to be adopted by the Goa Police for their canine companions if it is not being followed thus far.
ADELMO FERNANDES, Vasco
