Retired but Not Forgotten: President's Bodyguard to Keep 21-year-old Commandant's Charger Virat

Virat, the lead steed of the President’s Bodyguard got a VVIP send-off right after the Republic Day parade with the president, prime minister and defence minister in attendance. The 21-year-old army veteran was a part of 13 R-Day parades and served three presidents. But what happens to him now?

The President’s Body Guard (PBG), Virat’s regiment, has decided to keep him and take care of him for the rest of his retired life. “He is the commandant’s charger. One of our finest. A true leader. He may have retired, but we are not sending him anywhere. He stays with us,” said an officer of the PBG.

Virat was awarded the army chief of staff’s commendation card last year, only the second horse in the army to receive the honour. A Hanoverian, Virat joined the ranks of the President’s Bodyguard in 2003 when he was only three years old.

His regiment is the oldest in the Indian Army. The Hanoverian is a German breed and mainly used for competitive sports. For any horse to be part of the elite PBG, it has to be above 15.5 hands in height.

But to be a charger means you have to be a leader, which Virat is: calm and composed in the midst of chaos and crowds, clear thinking enough to anticipate its rider’s move.

An officer from the PBG said, “Horses are flight animals. So when a charger is chosen it happens after a rigorous selection process that can take at least five years. Essentially, a charger is the captain of the team and Virat has been one for 13 years.”

Before 2015, any animal, such as a horse, mule or dog, that retired from the army was put to sleep. But the policy was changed after a public outcry. The army now has “old age homes” for retired animals.

Service dogs are sent to the RVC centre in Meerut, their alma mater. Horses go to Remount Training School and Depot in Hempur, Uttarakhand. What do they do there? Anything that they feel like — grazing in the open and hanging out with friends. Every three months, they have to undergo a full health check-up, including a dental examination.

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