In a world where one’s own parents are brutally killed over material possessions, the heartwarming image of a crying constable beside the lifeless body of his canine buddy on television brought tears to many eyes last week.
Police constable Dharshana bid farewell to his canine partner after seven years of close comradeship and detective work together at the Batticaloa Police HQI.
Tuly (news outlets misspelt her name as Dolly), trained as a special sniffer dog, was brought to Sri Lanka in 2011 along with another 99 dogs for Police Kennels in Kandy.
Tuly arrived from the Netherlands along with several others, while there were a couple of batches from UK and Germany. Dr. Ashok Dangolle of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the Peradeniya University and ASP Sisira Weerakoon of Police Kennels Kandy travelled overseas to select the puppies and bring them down.
Trained to detect explosives and weapons, Tuly’s duties involved protecting VIPs, VVIPs, foreign dignitaries and special guests arriving in Batticaloa for state functions. Her duty was no mean feat, for just a simple mistake could be irreversible, disastrous and fatal for many.
Tuly’s final duty was at Webber Stadium in Batticaloa, earlier this month when President Maithripala Sirisena arrived there for the 96th International Cooperative Day, a grand state function. Tuly was tasked with ensuring that the vast stadium was danger-free for the large crowds taking part in the event, dutifully walking from one corner to the other sniffing at any suspicious looking parcel or bag.
Constable Dharshana recalled his first meeting with Tuly on December 6, 2011. A function was organised at the Temple of the Tooth to hand over the dogs to their new handlers. Their duty involved taking life-threatening risks, so blessings of the unseen were always welcome.
The first days with the puppy caused him to develop a lifelong bond, and with Tuly it was easier than expected. The pair bonded to the core and Constable Dharshana found it hard to spend even a day with Tuly out of sight. After a 10-month training in Kandy, the pair were assigned to Batticaloa along with two other dogs.
From the batch of 100 dogs, Tuly, Shady and Cora were dispatched to Batticaloa. While Tuly specialised in explosives, Shady and Cora were trained to detect illicit drugs and in crime scene investigation. Tuly and Constable Dharshana had to cover 12 police stations and road blocks.
Together they have successfully completed about 200 assignments. “I can see Tuly’s kennel from my resting quarters. When I get dressed to go for an assignment she could sense it, she would wag her tail hard and become excited, until I take her out of her cage,” Constable Dharshana recalled.
The dog developed a heart problem three months ago and she was taken to the Kandy Police Kennel for treatment.
“She was better after the treatment and was taken back to Batticaloa. “The day she died, I happened to pass her cage and I noticed that she did not come to greet me, I entered her cage and saw her lying on her side without any movement.
Then I realised that she was not breathing,” the police sleuth said. Tuly’s departure was so sudden that Constable Dharshana found it hard to bear. At the funeral he was not ashamed to shed tears for his beloved buddy who had become like family.
“Although there are over 80,000 in the police service, only about 300 policemen serve in the Police Kennel service. Unless you love the dogs, you wouldn’t be here,” he said emotionally, when asked what brought tears to his eyes at the funeral. “I was assigned Tuly in 2011 and we were together for seven years, nine months and 20 days,” he said without a pause.
Tuly was buried in a decorated casket, with police honours and after performing religious rituals in the premises of the Batticaloa Police Headquarters, last week.