Frontier Corps


The Frontier Corps, is a paramilitary force of Pakistan that is currently stationed in the provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, to maintain law and order while overseeing the control of the country's borders with Afghanistan and Iran. The Frontier Corps is an umbrella term for two separate organizations: FC NWFP stationed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and FC Balochistan stationed in Balochistan province. Each subdivision is headed by a inspector general, who is a Pakistan Army officer of at least major-general rank, although the force itself is under the jurisdiction of the Interior Ministry.
With a total manpower of approximately 80,000, the task of the Frontier Corps is to help local law enforcement, and to carry out border patrol and anti-smuggling operations.
Some of the FC's constituent units such as the Chitral Scouts, the Khyber Rifles, Swat Levies, the Kurram Militia, the Tochi Scouts, the South Waziristan Scouts, and the Zhob Militia have regimental histories dating back to British colonial times. The Khyber Rifles was in fact regularized during the 1965 war and fought with distinction in Kashmir.

History

The Frontier Corps was created in 1907 by Lord Curzon, the viceroy of British India, in order to organize seven militia and scout units in the tribal areas along the border with Afghanistan: the Khyber Rifles, the Zhob Militia, the Kurram Militia, the Tochi Scouts, the Chagai Militia, the South Waziristan Scouts and the Chitral Scouts.
The Frontier Corps was led by an "inspecting officer" who was a British officer of the rank of lieutenant colonel. In 1943 the inspecting officer was upgraded to an Inspector General, and the corps was expanded with the addition of new units—the Second Mahsud Scouts.
After independence in 1947, Pakistan expanded the corps further by creating a number of new units, including the Thal Scouts, the Northern Scouts, the Bajaur Scouts, the Karakoram Scouts, the Kalat Scouts, the Dir Scouts and the Kohistan Scouts. British officers continued to serve in the Frontier Corps up to the early 1950s. The corps was split into two major subdivisions with FC Balochistan incorporating the Zhob Militia, the Sibi Scouts, the Kalat Scouts, the Makran Militia, the Kharan Rifles, the Pishin Scouts, the Chaghai Militia and the First Mahsud Scouts. In 1975 three of the units: the Gilgit Scouts, the Karakoram Scouts and the Northern Scouts; were merged to form a new paramilitary force called the Northern Light Infantry, which is now a full infantry regiment of the Pakistan Army.
In the mid-1970s, the Pakistani government used FC Balochistan to counter the terrorists in Balochistan and the force is unpopular among some of the local population who associate them with human rights violations and heavy-handed operations. To improve the image of the corps, it has been involved in the construction of schools and hospitals, although as of late 2004, corps installations in the province were being routinely attacked by terrorists.
In the late 1990s, the Frontier Corps played an important role in eliminating opium poppy cultivation from Dir District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
In 2007, after the collapse of truce agreements between the Pakistani government and local militants, the Frontier Corps, teamed with regular Pakistani military units, conducted incursions into tribal areas controlled by the militants. The effort produced a series of bloody and clumsy confrontations. On August 30, about 250 Pakistani troops, mostly from the Frontier Corps, surrendered to militants without a fight. In early November, most were released in exchange for 25 militants held by the Pakistan Army.
There is a widespread consensus among United States government military and intelligence experts that the Frontier Corps are the best potential military units against the Islamist militants because its troops are locally recruited, know local languages and understand local cultures. The United States provided more than US$7 billion in military aid to Pakistan from 2002 to 2007, most of which was used to equip the Frontier Corps because it is in the frontline of the fight against the Islamist insurgents. From late 2007, the Pakistani government intended to expand the corps to 100,000 and use it more in fighting Islamist militants, particularly Al-Qaeda, after extensive consultations with the U.S. government and an agreement to start a multi-year effort to bolster it including the establishment of a counterinsurgency training centre. The new US Obama policy for Pakistan is seen as a clear victory for the Pakistan Army lobby in the US. The $1.5billion a year aid recently announced with no strings attached will go a long way in seeing that the Frontier Corps stay at the height of their professional abilities due to new equipment and training.
The Corps has also fired occasionally on the U.S.-assisted Afghan Army."

Role

During times of difficulties, the government occasionally gives the FC the power to arrest and detain suspects such as in late 2012 and early 2013 when the Prime Minister of Pakistan granted the FC policing powers. These temporary powers can also be extended on the orders or consent of the provincial government or federal government or both.

Organization

The senior command posts of the Frontier Corps are filled by officers seconded from the Pakistan Army for two to three years.
The Scouts Training Academy is in Mirali in North Waziristan.
The Frontier Corps in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is headquartered in Bala Hisar Fort in Peshawar.
The Frontier Corps in Balochistan is headquartered in Quetta and is led by Major General Nadeem Ahmed Anjum. FC Balochistan has a manpower of more than 50,000 troops. The School of Frontier Corps and Training Centre is in Loralai, whereas Battle School Belali is for advanced courses.
The corps is divided into thirty-four local units—-fifteen in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province and nineteen in Balochistan—and are as follows :
;Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
  1. Chitral Scouts
  2. Khyber Rifles
  3. Kurram Militia
  4. South Waziristan Scouts
  5. Tochi Scouts
  6. Mahsud Scouts
  7. Mohmand Rifles
  8. Shawal Rifles
  9. Swat Scouts
  10. Orakzai Scouts
  11. Khattak Scouts
  12. Dir Scouts
  13. Bajur Scouts
  14. Thal Scouts
  15. Bhittani Rifles
;Frontier Corps Balochistan:
  1. Zhob Militia
  2. Noshki Militia
  3. Sibi Scouts
  4. Mekran/Makran Scouts
  5. Taftan Rifles
  6. Chaman Scouts
  7. Dalbandin Rifles
  8. Maiwind Rifles
  9. Ghazaband Scouts
  10. Bambore Rifles
  11. Loralai Scouts
  12. Qilla Abdullah Scouts
  13. Awaran Militia
  14. Panjgur Rifles
  15. Kalat scouts
  16. Sui Rifles
  17. Chiltan Rifles
  18. Kharan Rifles
  19. Dasht scouts
Other units also located in Balochistan:
  1. School of FC and Training Centre, Loralai
  2. IAC SQN
  3. Frontier Corps Battle School.
  4. SOW.

    Personnel

There were a total 80,000 active personnel as of 2008 and additional wings have been raised to meet the security challenges. Frontier Corps units are locally recruited and are officered by Pakistani Army officers.

Equipment

The equipment of the Frontier Corps includes G3, Type 56 & QBZ-95 assault rifles, RPG 7 rocket-launcher, MG3 general-purpose machine gun, various handguns, short range artillery and mortars as well as aviation support, Medium Tanks, APCs and AFVs.

Inspectors general

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

After independence in 1947, the Inspectors-General of FC NWFP were:
  1. Brig Ahmad Jan, MBE
  2. Brig K A Rahim Khan
  3. Brig Bakhtiar Rana, MC
  4. Brig Sadiq Ullah Khan, M.C
  5. Brig Rakhman Gul, SQA, S, K, MC
  6. Brig Sadiq Ullah Khan, MC
  7. Brig Bahadur Sher, MC
  8. Brig Mahboob Khan, TQA
  9. Brig Mahmud Jan, SQA
  10. Maj-Gen Shireen Dil Khan Niazi
  11. Brig Iftikhar e Bashir
  12. Maj-Gen Naseerullah Babar, SJ & Bar
  13. Maj-Gen Ghulam Rabbani Khan, SBt
  14. Maj-Gen Agha Zulfiqar Ali Khan
  15. Maj-Gen Mian Muhammad Afzal
  16. Maj-Gen Arif Bangash, SBt
  17. Maj-Gen Mohammad Shafiq, SBt
  18. Maj-Gen Ghazi ud Din Rana, SBt
  19. Maj-Gen Humayun Khan Bangash, TBt
  20. Maj-Gen Muhammad Naeem Akbar Khan
  21. Maj-Gen Mumtaz Gul, TBt
  22. Maj-Gen Fazal Ghafoor, SBt
  23. Maj-Gen Sultan Habib
  24. Maj-Gen Tajul Haq
  25. Maj-Gen Hamid Khan
  26. Maj-Gen Tariq Masood
  27. Maj-Gen Alam Khattak
  28. Maj-Gen Tariq Khan
  29. Maj-Gen Nadir Zeb
  30. Maj-Gen Ghayur Mehmood, TBt
  31. Maj-Gen Tayyab Azam
  32. Maj-Gen Shaheen Mazhar Mehmood
In 2017 The FC KP was split into:-
FC KP and FC KP
IGFC KP
  1. Maj-Gen Naseem Ashraf
  2. Maj-Gen Rahat Naseem Ahmed Khan
IGFC KP
  1. Maj-Gen Azhar Iqbal Abbasi

    Balochistan

  2. Maj. Gen. Rehmat Ali Shah
  3. Brig. Shakur Jan, SJ
  4. Maj. Gen. Alam Jan Mehsud
  5. Maj. Gen. Khurshid Ali
  6. Maj. Gen. M. Akram
  7. Maj. Gen. Shafiq Ahmed, SJ
  8. Maj. Gen. Sardar M. Khalid
  9. Maj.Gen. Chaudhry M. Nawaz
  10. Maj.Gen. Syed Zafar Mehdi
  11. Maj.Gen. M. Zia-ul-Haq
  12. Maj.Gen. Rafiullah Khan Niazi
  13. Maj.Gen. M. Ziaullah Khan
  14. Maj.Gen. Syed Sadaqat Ali Shah
  15. Maj.Gen. Shujaat Zamir Dar
  16. Maj.Gen. Salim Nawaz
  17. Maj.Gen. Ubaid Ullah Khan Khattak
  18. Maj.Gen. Ejaz Shahid
  19. Maj.Gen. Sher Afghun
  20. Maj.Gen. Nadeem Ahmed Anjum
  21. Maj.Gen. Fayyaz Hussain Shah

    Notable Deputy Inspector generals

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

1. Brigadier Tila Mohammad
2. Brigadier Nadir Zeb
3. Brigadier Muhammad Usman Khan SI.M
4. Brigadier Khalid Javed

Balochistan

1. Brigadier Altaf Ayub Khan
2. Brigadier Furqan
3. Brigadier Sikandar Khan
4. Brigadier Khalid Saleem
5. Brigadier Tahir Mehmood

Frontier Corps schools and colleges

According to former Inspector General FC Major-General Obaidullah Khan Khattak while addressing to students, parents and journalists in a FC sponsored school ceremony in 2012 that more than 22,000 students are getting education in various FC organised Schools and a College in Balochistan. Most of the FC educational institutes are affiliated with Federal board rather than provincial boards in Balochistan. Currently FC funding/governing three schools and a college in Balochistan.
  1. Major Pervaiz shaheed FC School & College, Beleli, Quetta.
  2. Lieutenant Safiullah Shaheed FC school, Noshki.
  3. FC school, Chaman.
  4. FC school, Loralai.

    Notable operations, incidents and controversies

Standard equipment