THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Dogs with special skills for detecting human body scent 10-12 feet away from disaster debris joined the rescue operations on Thursday. Dogs will signal when they detect a human scent from under the debris of a landslide. With this, the dead body can be recovered by digging the place.

These rescue dogs are trained at the RVC (Remount Veterinary Corps) centre in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. These dogs are used by the army to fight against terrorist activities, hunt for drugs and help in natural disasters. Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Cambodia and South Africa often send their personnel to India for training in dog handling. Apart from Labradors, Belgian Malinois and German Shepherds, Indian breeds such as the Rajapalayam are also being trained by the army.