Addressing the nation on the 68th edition of his monthly radio programme on August 30, Prime Minister Narendra Modi once again stressed on making all things indigenous and homegrown a part of our lives, including dogs of local breed.
Urging Indians to adopt Indian dogs, he advised those looking to keep pets to consider dogs of local breeds.
He said the Indian Council of Agricultural Research is currently conducting research on indie dogs.
“The purpose of the research is to make Indian breeds better and more useful. Next time you think of keeping a dog then you must bring one of the Indian-breed dogs home,” said PM Modi.
The PM reminded the importance of keeping dogs as pets for security reasons and how dogs have been an important part of several security operations.
He reminded Indians of the Army dogs - Vida and Sophie - who were awarded the Chief of Army Staff ‘Commendation Cards’ during the 74th Independence Day celebrations on August 15.
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Modi said there are many such brave dogs of local breeds that are part of the Indian armed forces, have taken part in multiple security operations, and have also given up their lives for the nation.
He added: “Such dogs have been instrumental in preventing many bomb blasts and foiling terror plots.”
To elaborate, he cited the example of a dog named Balram, which had helped discover explosives planted on the Amarnath Yatra route in 2006. That is not all. In the year 2002, another canine called Bhawna had helped detect IED.
Going back to his point, Modi said: “I have heard that Indian breed dogs are very good and competent. The Mudhol hound and the Himachali hound are some of the best Indian dogs, while the Rajapalayam, Kanni, Chippiparai, and Combai are very good too.”
The Indian Army and the National Security Guard have trained and inducted Mudhol hounds into their dog squads, while the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has inducted dogs of the Combai breed.
To encourage prospective pet owners, he reminded that "these dogs require minimum upkeep and are comfortable with Indian climatic conditions”.