Kerala Cop Adopts Dog That Found Child’s Body in Idukki Landslide

Civil police officer Ajith Madhavan has adopted the dog.

(Photo Courtesy: The News Minute)

A dog named Koovi, who discovered the body of a two-year-old girl from the Idukki landslides, has been adopted by civil police officer Ajith Madhavan, who is also a trainer at the district police dog squad.

He went ahead with the adoption after being granted permission by the district and forest authorities, The Indian Express reported.

It was on the day of the incident that rescue personnel at the landslide area saw that Koovi and two other dogs had been waiting for days at the site and were frantically walking across the area in search of something.

It was later learned that the Koovi had been raised by a deceased girl’s family and was therefore attached to the child. However, only the child’s grandmother survived the tragedy.

It was Koovi, a dog that has been waiting for days at the site of the landslide, that helped rescuers reach Dhanushka’s mortal remains.(Photo Courtesy: The News Minute)

Though sniffer dogs were brought to the area of the incident initially, due to the extreme weather conditions they could not remain there for long. Subsequently, local pet dogs in the area, like Koovi, assisted in detecting bodies under the rubble.

It’s not clear whether Koovi will receive training as part of the dog squad or get inducted into the force. The police officer might also keep Koovi as a pet at home.

A total of 52 deaths have been reported in the landslide in Idukki district of Kerala. Rescue workers fear that water could have swept away some of the victims into the river.

Heavy rains in several parts of Kerala triggered floods and landslides, which have wreaked havoc in the region over the past few days.