Hyderabad Police launch women’s mounted unit, expand dog squad

The Hyderabad City Police introduced a women’s mounted unit and announced plans to strengthen its dog squad to ease pressure on the existing force and to improve crime detection.

Announcing the initiative at Goshamahal Mounted Unit, Hyderabad Police Commissioner C.V. Anand said that ten women constables from the Armed Reserve (AR) have completed two months of training to become part of the mounted police force.

“They will now be deployed for security arrangements, VIP movements, and routine patrolling. This is an effort to encourage women to come to the forefront in every sphere,” he said.

The event saw the women constables, clad in their uniform, a white polo-neck tee shirt and khaki trousers, confidently handling their horses in front of senior officers. A demonstration of equestrian skills was held, with women riders successfully jumping hurdles, drawing applause from colleagues and people.

The Commissioner also revealed that the dog squad, which currently has 34 dogs, is expanded. To address this, the strength will be increased to 54 after new recruits undergo training at the Integrated Intelligence Training Academy (IITA). The new dogs will aid in detecting explosives, narcotics, and tracking criminals. A committee has been formed to ensure that only high-quality dogs from top breeders are inducted. Twelve puppies, including Labradors and Belgian Malinois, were presented at the event, where senior police officials held them in their arms for the cameras.

As part of infrastructure development, the mounted ground and stables at Goshamahal will soon be shifted to a new 11.5-acre site sanctioned by the government, in view of the upcoming Osmania General Hospital construction. The facility will include kennels for 60 dogs, stables, a parade ground, and buildings for the City Security Wing. Tenders for the project will be finalised on September 8.

The event was attended by senior officers including DCP Rakshita Krishna Murthy, DCP G. Chandramohan, DCP Dara Kavitha, and Additional DCP Giri Babu.