Winged Messengers: Why Odisha Police continues to keep pigeon carriers

In an era of instant messaging, video calls, the internet and mobiles, where the traditional means of communication like postcards and telegrams have become obsolete, the police force in the state of Odisha is making dedicated efforts to preserve an even older practice — of carrier pigeons. They do it in order to use a flock of carrier pigeons when disasters disrupt communication networks. Let’s take a closer look at how Odisha keeps a historic custom alive in current times, and how pigeons have assisted the police in the past. Odisha police preserves carrier pigeons Dating from the days of British colonial rule when police stations used the birds to communicate with each other, the state’s carrier pigeon service employs more than 100 Belgian Homer pigeons. “We have kept the pigeons for their heritage value and to preserve them for future generations,” said Satish Kumar Gajbhiye, an inspector-general of police in the district of Cuttack. Anil Dhir, from the Indian National Trust of Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) who works with police to run the service, claims that Odisha has “the only existing pigeon carrier service in the world, and a unique example of an ancient tradition being kept alive in modern times,” as per a report in The Guardian. About 155 such pigeons are under police care currently. There are two lofts in Cuttack and one at a police training college in Angul, central Odisha, he added. [caption id=“attachment_12762592” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] A policeman and trainer Parshuram Nanda shows a capsule tied to a leg of a Belgian homer pigeon, which carries the message, during training, in Cuttack. Reuters[/caption] The state government spends Rs 5.14 lakh a year for the upkeep of the pigeons and salaries of the staff, reports Guardian. With this, these dependable birds have become a vital link between remote police stations when traditional communications failed during disasters. In fact, during the catastrophic flood of 1982, the Police Pigeon Service served as the only line of communication to the marooned town of Banki. The pigeons also played an important role during the 1999 Super Cyclone and subsequent floods, when radio network collapse caused almost all lines of communication to fail. Official sources also claim that the intelligent pigeons have assisted the police department in outwitting and capturing many criminals on the run. Police said the pigeons, which can fly at a speed of 55 kph (34 mph), for up to 500 miles (800 km) at a stretch, have proved a lifeline at least twice in the last four decades. Pigeon communication never fails The pigeons usually carry messages written on lightweight onion paper, inserted into a capsule and then tied to a leg. Dhir says mostly Belgian pigeons are chosen as they can fly 25 km in just 15-25 minutes and live up to 20 years. According to the Betterindia,com, these pigeons can also fly up to 500 miles at a stretch with a speed of 55 km per hour, depending on the weather conditions. “We start training the birds at five to six weeks old, when they are placed in a crate and put in their shelter,” said Parshuram Nanda, who looks after the birds. They are also taught to recognise the locality and made to practise different types of services. [caption id=“attachment_12762602” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Policeman and trainer Parshuram Nanda releases a Belgian Homer pigeon from a cage as part of their training to carry a message, in Cuttack. Reuters[/caption] As they get older, the pigeons are taken some distance away to be freed and fly back to the shelter by instinct. “The distance is increased gradually, and within 10 days, they are able to return from about 30 km (19 miles),” Nanda said. Studies show the pigeons can detect magnetic fields and zoom in on their destination from thousands of miles away, said historian Anil Dhir, who works with the police. “Even in the unlikely event that every mode of communication breaks down tomorrow, the pigeons will never fail,” he said. Pigeon practice under threat The use of pigeons as messengers was first recorded in Eygpt around 3,000 BC. However, in India, they were believed to be first used in the 16th-Century Mughal era, as per the Guardian report. Pigeons came into their own during wartime, carrying secret messages around military networks, and were widely used during the first and second world wars, delivering messages across Europe, India and Burma (now Myanmar). Carrier pigeons took news of the conquest of Gaul to Rome, brought to England the news of Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo. But the arrival of modern communications means the Indian pigeons today figure mostly in ceremonial roles during government functions for national holidays such as Independence Day and Republic Day, Gajbhiye said. The police handler, who does not want to be named, told Guardian: “Many government officials view the ‘pigeongram’ as a waste of resources. There’s increasing talk of the service being disbanded. However, every time this happens, there’s a huge public outcry.” With inputs from Reuters  Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.