The K9 Ghostbusters Initiative

Let’s go back to the summer of 2016.

The ghost situation at SVNIT had gotten out of control as the souls of the departed flooded the campus. With no one to resist their dark powers, they established a reign of terror that soon spread its terrifying tentacles over the entire college. Recently, the spirits had taken a particular liking to abducting the living. Daring and adventurous students often wandered into the dark regions of the forests at the wee hours of nighttime, expecting to experience rib-tickling thrills and make unprecedented discoveries. They made new discoveries for sure but didn’t stick around long enough to tell anyone about it.

These eerie disappearances became more frequent by the day. The rooms of Gajjar started to empty one by one. Just in two weeks, over 20 promising, young engineers went missing. Something had to be done. If the students kept vanishing like this, how would they pay their fees? The college administration decided that they had to save their students. This miraculous change of thought coincided with the appointment of the new Director in October 2016.

The Director decided to take strict action and conduct an “internal investigation” into the case of the vanishing students. Following this “internal investigation”, a puzzling discovery was brought forth — SVNIT had become a breeding ground for bad spirits. It was quite unbelievable really. The administration had worked tirelessly day and night to ensure the well-being and happiness of the students. Then how did this darkness spread on campus despite such valiant efforts? There was something here at SVNIT that drew the paranormal. Maybe it was the grim atmosphere, the muffled cries of anguish, or the horrid secrets buried here. Or maybe it was simply the availability of secluded spots, perfect hiding places for lost and forgotten spirits. Some theorists even suggest that the immense academic and social pressures were leading to a surge of negative energy, which attracted these malicious spirits like a moth to a flame. It seems that we’ll never uncover the true cause as this “internal investigation” was also hidden from the public eye.

In the weeks that followed, some new developments occurred. Let me explain it to you in simple terms. There was an idea, The Director knows this, called the Protectors Initiative. The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, to see if they could become something more. To see if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles we SVNITians never could. However, under the prevailing circumstances, these warriors needed to be discreet, stealthy, almost ninja-like creatures that could take down any threat. After all, this special force was meant to operate inside the college campus and defend it. No human, let alone an ordinary SVNITian, could endure this responsibility.

The Director called an urgent all-party meeting — the meeting that was forever etched into the history books of SVNIT. That is when the furry creatures roaming the campus were chosen. That is when the K9 Ghostbusters Initiative began. The meeting culminated in the creation of a special K9 Ghostbusters Unit. The oldest, wisest, and bravest K9, Sheroo, was appointed as the squadron leader. 10 brave K9 soldiers joined the ranks of elite protectors and spread out throughout the SVNIT campus. Sheroo was an exceptional leader and he trained his soldiers brilliantly in the arts of deception, acting, and merciless combat. After one month of brutal training, Sheroo’s K9 unit was prepared to execute “Operation: Holiday Cleaning”.

The squadron split into five units (2 soldiers in each unit) and entered the Gajjar forests, shuddering with anticipation (and the chill of a December night). Armed with removable fangs coated with ghost-repellent and anti-ghost armour, the five K9 units converged from all sides onto the hotspot of supernatural activity in the pitch-black depths of the forest. Exactly 3 minutes and 24 seconds later, the K9 squad re-emerged from the forest, all 10 soldiers safe and sound.

Did they succeed in the operation? Of course they did, you dummy. Never doubt a K9 soldier’s abilities. They are the elite of the elite. Understood?

“Operation: Holiday Cleaning” was buried and hidden from the public eye for obvious reasons. You must be wondering: what happened to the valiant K9 Ghostbusters Unit? Well, an operation so secret couldn’t be exposed, even to the soldiers’ families and other four-legged friends. So, the K9 soldiers just soaked in the silent appreciation and made peace with the fact that through this covert operation, they had fulfilled their duty towards their home. No longer would more mindless-but-innocent students be abducted by the cruel and rampant spirits. No longer would their distraught friends run around on campus begging for someone to help find their lost friend, only to be told to come after the lunch break. With the K9 Ghostbusters Unit silently patrolling the campus, the students were safe. Any future threats would be thwarted by the brave guardians of SVNIT.

Of course, the students never discovered how or why everything suddenly went back to normal after that cold December night. But they did figure out one thing — someone was looking out for them, protecting them silently. Yet, they continued to kick and drive away dogs wandering around the hostels, oblivious to the fact that some of these were the same K9 soldiers that saved their college years ago. These naive students never understood why some dogs were barking madly and moving around frantically all night long, as if they had seen a ghost. If only these students could see the battles these K9 soldiers were fighting to protect them, they would realize how fortunate they were.

These young engineers didn’t understand the importance of the hidden protectors. But you do. So, next time you see one of these silent guardians, be gentle, be kind. Give them a pat on their heads, a scratch behind their ears, or simply a snack for them to munch on. And most importantly, thank them for their service.