With wildlife crimes on an upswing in the state, the Odisha Forest Department has decided to procure Belgian sniffer dogs to tackle poaching activities and smuggling of wildlife trophies.

The snigger will be a welcome addition to the Forest Department, which is contending with the immense workload due to the shortage of staff for wildlife and forest patrolling. The trained dogs will come in handy to track wildlife criminals besides rescuing wildlife in distressed conditions in forest areas, said a senior official of the Forest Department.

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Authorities of seven wildlife and territorial forest divisions, exposed to wildlife offences, have been asked to publish notification for procurement of sniffer dogs from competent agencies, the official said.

The rising trend of wildlife crimes in Odisha necessitates the improvement of holistic infrastructure on crime and investigation. Procurement of sniffers/trackers in various forest and wildlife divisions will enhance the capabilities of the department in the detection of offenders and contrabands which will further strengthen wildlife protection, said an official of State wildlife headquarters.

In this context, the Odisha principal chief conservator of forest (wildlife) and Chief wildlife warden has proposed for the procurement of ten dogs in the first phase in seven wildlife and territorial divisions of the State.

The breeds shall be Belgian Malinois of known pedigree with ages between 12 months to 18 months. The dogs must be registered with the Kennel Club of India or a similar recognized body.

The dogs will be trained in scent detection to identify and track wildlife including the injured or trapped animals within the forest reserve. The dogs will also be trained to detect wildlife contrabands like Royal Bengal Tiger skin, leopard skin, elephant tusks, wildlife meat, sun, explosives, snare, electric wires set for electrocution of wild animals, and poison used to kill wildlife. The trained dogs will also be able to track poachers by following their walking trail, the official added.