SHIMLA: Not many would know that India’s first dog squad was raised in Shimla in 1957 and first dog to become part of policing was a German shepherd named “Hero” imported from Ireland for a princely sum of 250 pound then. Himachal Pradesh got this unique distinction of raising first dog squad due to the efforts of then Lt. Governor Raja Bajrang Bahadur Singh Bhadri Bhadri was an ardent dog lover and helped to set up police dog squad in Shimla in 1957 having total strength of 12 dogs. This interesting and historical fact has been revealed in the newly published Coffee Table Book titled “Himachal Pradesh police – Guardians of the Hills”.This book is authored by Inspector General of Police Zahur Haider Zaidi, who was assisted by Superintendent of Police Gurdev Chand Sharma, ASI Vinod Kaushik, ASI Satya Prakash and Constable Pawan Kumar. The team worked for three months to compile the historical facts.Zahur Haider Zaidi said that Himachal Pradesh dog squad has also trained dogs from more than six states, including Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka. He said that Uttar Pradesh which was a big state raised its dog squad in 1962 while another big state Karnataka raised its dog squad in 1965.He said that main purpose of publication of this book is to bring out the pride of Himachal Pradesh Police and showcase its achievements over the years. He said that book has all the details of historical buildings related to police activities, weapons and changes in the uniform made over a period of time.ADGP (Law and Order) Sanjay Kundu said that book covers the rich traditions and achievements of the Himachal Police in the field of controlling law and order, crime, drug menace, ensuring the safety and security of all our visitors to the state. The book also covers elements like our Dog squad which was the first Police Dog Squad in the Country, he added.