The Mumbai Police’s mounted unit, discontinued in 1932 to make way for “more cars hitting the city” and revived and disbanded again over the years, is now moving from a ceremonial role to an operational one for the Ganeshotsav festival.

The unit, which was restarted in 2024, has so far been used mainly for ceremonial purposes, including Republic Day and Raising Day celebrations.

This year, the 22 horses that currently form the mounted police unit will be deployed on a rotational basis at various immersion points around the city’s beaches, where large crowds will gather and vehicles cannot enter because of the sand.

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An official said the police had been gradually preparing the unit over the past year, including through a training session at Juhu beach in May.

“Now we are confident the horses are equipped to be used for crowd control and related purposes during the Ganesh festival. We have passed on instructions to police stations that have these immersion points under their jurisdictions to keep space on the beach where horses can be kept,” the official said.

The official added that due to several factors, including the Covid-19 pandemic, the mounted unit could not be utilised to its maximum capacity in the past few years.

“One of the issues that we were facing was that officers from police stations who chose to work with the mounted police unit would eventually be transferred as per service rules and the process would have to begin again,” the official said.

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“Earlier this month, based on our proposal, the Maharashtra government approved the creation of 70 new posts in the sportsperson horse-rider cadre for the Mounted Police Unit. These personnel would be chosen from the sports category, those formerly in the Armed Forces and others who have worked with horses before. This will be a separate cadre that will be posted with the mounted police so that every few years we do not need to train newer people,” he said.

The official added that the government had last month also approved Rs 1.27 crore for the mounted police for expenses such as the purchase of horses and remuneration for trainers.

An official said that apart from patrolling beaches, the horses would also be used in areas that vehicles cannot reach, such as forests or steep climbs. The horses, which have undergone nearly six months of training, will continue to participate in parades and sports events.

The unit operates from Marol in Andheri (East), where it has a permanent stable spread over 2.96 acres.

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The mounted unit was originally disbanded in 1932 by then Mumbai Police Commissioner Sir Patrick Kelly, who believed it left little space for the increasing number of vehicles on the roads. It was brought back in 2020, with fashion designer Manish Malhotra designing the uniform for the riders.

However, five of the 13 horses died due to health issues. Officials said it was difficult to keep the horses healthy and that maintenance costs were high. The unit was consequently disbanded in 2022 before being restarted in 2024.