Manipur's Tangkhul Hui, Kombai of Tamil Nadu to boost sniffer power of Assam Rifles

Assam Rifles is preparing dog squads comprising Tangkhul Hui and Kombai, two indigenous breeds from Manipur and Tamil Nadu, respectively, along with the imported breeds, in order to gradually expand in its gamut of canine power.

Jorhat (Assam): Not just in the manufacture and installation of defense equipments, defence forces are gradually trying to adopt the concept of Atmanirbhar Bharat in their canine power.

Assam Rifles, the country's oldest paramilitary force, is preparing dog squads comprising Tangkhul Hui and Kombai, two indigenous breeds from Manipur and Tamil Nadu, respectively, along with the imported breeds, in order to gradually expand in its gamut of canine power.

The Assam Rifles Dog Training Centre here at Jorhat in eastern Assam, has successfully completed a pilot project by training six Tangkhul Huis, a local breed, which had been used by Tangkhul Naga tribes in Manipur's Ukhrul district for traditional hunting practices. The centre is now gearing up to start preparing canine squad comprising the Tangkhul Hui and the Kombai.

"We started training the six Tangkhul Hui dogs in 2022 as a pilot project. The project was successfull and so we have decided to induct more Tangkhul Hui. We will also induct the Kombai dogs as per the directive of the Ministry of Home Affairs to gradually adopt the concept of Atmanirbhar Bharat even in expanding the range of canine power of our central forces," Lt. Col. Alok Palei, who heads the centre, told DH, here on Thursday.

Haofa or Tangkhul Hui, Palei said, are preferred not just for stamina but also for dissease resistance in hot and humid weather conditions.

Tangkhul Hui.

Kombai, named after Kombai town of Tamil Nadu, were used by the Zamindars for guarding.

The centre has so far trained Labrador, German Shephard, Belgian Malinois and Tangkhul Huis. "Although Belgian Malinois are the best performers, our effort is to train our local breeds too," Palei said.

Assam Rifles has 344 authorised strength of dogs, but at present it has 253 dogs, deployed in various units across the Northeast and four units in Jammu and Kashmir. The Jorhat centre that caters to the entire Assam Rifles force, has 104 dogs and 174 handlers, which are in different stages of training.

Although Assam Rilfes is a paramilitary force, it operates under operational command of defence ministry.

Palei said they were in process of identifying the parent stock of Kombai.

"As the first step, we will induct two males and eight females of Kombai in April." He said that the Tangkhul Hui and Kombai breeds are likely to be inducted into the Assam Rifles’ dog squad by March 2027.