KARACHI, April 28: The city police’s mounted police unit has a grand total of seven mostly aging horses, even though over the years the unit’s role has been limited more to ceremonial parades than to performing security and other duties as described in the Police Rules, 1934.

Considered one of the basic components of the police force, each of the seven horses has a name, a service book and is entitled to a certain amount of daily allowance. However, looking at their poor health, the unit’s horses seem deprived of proper care and nourishment.

To revive the unit, a fresh batch of horses was expected to join the force, but the consignment has been delayed because a few of the horses developed some ailment. The Sindh police have already made advance payments to the Army Mona Depot in Sargodha for about 35 to 40 horses for its mounted police unit.

Of the unit’s seven horses, three are limited to a stable located behind the Clifton police station. The eldest among them is 30 years old, while two are between 20 and 21 years of age. According to experts, the average life span of a horse is between 20 and 25 years. The remaining four horses are kept at the race course ground in Malir as they are still employed for field duty during VVIP movements. They patrol the funnel area of the airport (tarmac approach or surrounding area) and certain other places where other means of transport cannot be employed, to ensure security.

The police have made some arrangement for the horses for their stay at the race course. Each horse has a service book and is entitled to Rs230 per day. These are actually the daily feeding expenditures, although a caretaker claims that only Rs100 is spent on food for a single horse daily.

“Besides VIP duties, the unit still patrols the seaside, is occasionally detailed for security duties during the assembly session and is very effective in controlling law and order situations,” said SP Garden Headquarters Rana Pervez, who also heads the mounted police unit.

According to the Police Rules, 1934, the “chief uses of mounted police are (a) organised operations against mobile gangs of criminals, (b) patrolling for the prevention of dacoities, highway robberies and the like, (c) the control of crowds and dispersal of disorderly mobs, (d) assistance to the foot police in traffic control and (e) process serving, message carrying and escort duty where conditions are suitable.”

However, the SP said the number of horses had dwindled over the years as animals grew old and had to be retired and culled on the vet’s directives.

In reply to a question about the delivery of horses, he said around 35 to 40 fresh horses were due to be delivered sometime by the end of next month, for which advance payments had been made. At the moment, he added, the number of personnel associated with the unit was satisfactory, but an addition will be required once the expected batch of animals reaches Karachi.

The mounted police was first set up by the governor of New South Wales (Australia) in 1825 to tackle growing violence. After the success of these units, the service was replicated by the British Empire in all its colonies.

In Lahore, the mounted police staged a comeback after 18 years in 2006, when its units patrolled the Mall and the streets of Liberty Market, where they were greeted by shoppers with amused smiles. The official website of the Punjab police still glorifies the mounted police unit as its picture is hosted on its homepage. But it is yet to be seen when and how the army-trained horses are going to be inducted into the mounted police unit of Karachi.