The Special Operation Group (SOG) is an Indian elite paramilitary unit operating under the

Odisha Police The Odisha Police abbreviated as either OP or OPS, is the law enforcement agency for the state of Odisha in India. It is headquartered in Cuttack, the former capital of Odisha. The Odisha Police is headed by a Director General of Police, curren ...

(OP). The force specializes in neutralizing terrorists, insurgents and extremists. They are trained to execute rapid action under any circumstance; these are highly trained for field craft and jungle warfare as well. SOG Odisha

Mission

The Special Operation Group (SOG) was formed in August 2004, under the Home Department of the

Government of Odisha The government of the Indian state of Odisha and its 30 districts consists of an executive, led by the Governor of Odisha, a judiciary, and a legislative branch. Like other states in India, the head of state of Odisha is the Governor, appoi ...

with the main objective of neutralizing any

terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

insurgent An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric warfare, asymmetric na ...

, extremist groups operating in

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

Organisation

Headquarters

*Odisha State Police Headquarters,

Cuttack Cuttack (, or officially Kataka ) in Odia is the former capital and the second largest city in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the headquarters of the Cuttack district. The name of the city is an anglicised form of ''Kataka'' which literall ...

*Odisha Special Intelligence Wing (SIW),

Bhubaneswar Bhubaneswar (; ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. The region, especially the old town, was historically often depicted as ''Ekamra Kshetra'' (area (''kshetra'') adorned with mango trees (''ekamra'')). Bhubaneswar is ...

The Special Operation Group, initially in 2004, had 543 active posts, but by 2009 it had grown to 1,370 personnel. In 2018, former

Director General of Police Director general of police (DGP) is a rank in the Indian Police Service, held by the highest ranking police officer in a State or a Union Territory of India, typically heading the state or the UT police force. The DGP is appointed by the cabin ...

(

) Sanjeev Marik disclosed that the force consisted of 3000 active personnel.

Training

They receive training at SOG Training Centre in Chandaka, Bhubaneswar and also from the army base in

Jabalpur Jabalpur is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. According to the 2011 census, it is the third-largest urban agglomeration in Madhya Pradesh and the country's 38th-largest urban agglomeration. J ...

. Recruitment in the force isn't direct, the personnel are drawn from Civil Police,

Odisha Special Armed Police Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of Sch ...

Battalions and Indian Reserve (IR) Battalions. The unit also allows recruitment of operatives from the

Indian Armed Forces The Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Armed Forces are supported by ...

, Central Para Military Forces and units of other Indian State Police Services. It works closely with the Special Intelligence Wing (SIW) of the

Honours

References