Indian police still rely on carrier pigeons

A Belgian Homer pigeon preserved by police in Cuttack (Odisha, India)

Dating back to the British colonial era when police stations used the birds to communicate with each other, Odisha's carrier pigeon team has more than 100 Belgian Homer pigeons, according to Reuters.

“We have kept these pigeons for their heritage value and to preserve them for future generations,” said Satish Kumar Gajbhiye, inspector general of police of Cuttack district (Odisha state).

A cage containing Belgian Homer pigeons in Cuttack (Odisha, India)

Police say the Homer pigeons - which can fly at speeds of 55km/h and cover distances of up to 800km - have come to their rescue at least twice in the past four decades.

They played a vital role when a powerful cyclone hit coastal areas in 1999, destroying communication lines, and when floods devastated parts of Odisha state in 1982.

The pigeons often carried letters written on very light onion paper. The letters were tucked into a small device tied to the bird's leg.

A mail carrier tied to a pigeon's leg in Cuttack (Odisha, India)

“We start training the birds when they are five to six weeks old. They are placed in small cages and brought into the aviary,” Parshuram Nanda, who looks after the birds, told Reuters.

When they are older, the pigeons are taken to a far away place to be set free and fly back to their shelter by instinct.

“The distance gradually increased, and within 10 days they could return from 30 km away,” said Mr. Nanda.

Parshuram Nanda, caretaker of homing pigeons in Cuttack (Odisha, India)

Pigeons carried news of the conquest of Gaul to Rome in ancient times, brought to Britain news of Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo in the early 19th century, and were used extensively for communication during the two world wars in the 20th century.

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But the advent of modern media means that pigeons in India today play mainly a ceremonial role in government functions on national holidays such as Independence Day and Republic Day, Mr Gajbhiye said.

Homing pigeons today in India play a mainly ceremonial role.

Historian Anil Dhir, who works with the police, said studies showed pigeons could detect magnetic fields and see their destination from thousands of miles away.

"Even in the unlikely event that all means of communication were destroyed tomorrow, these pigeons would never fail," he said.

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