The structure of the Pakistan Army is based on two distinct themes: operational and administrative. Operationally the Pakistan Army is divided into nine corps and three corps-level formations with areas of responsibility (AOR) ranging from the mountainous regions of the north to the desert and coastal regions of the south. Administratively it is divided in several regiments (details below). The General Headquarters (GHQ) of the Army is located in Rawalpindi in Punjab province. It is planned to be moved to the capital city of Islamabad nearby.
From left, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Navy Adm. Mike Mullen and Rear Adm. Scott Van Buskirk, commander of Carrier Strike Group 9, speak with Chief of Army Staff Gen. Ashfaq Kayani and Maj. Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha, director general of military operations, on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) while under way in the northern part of the Arabian Sea on Aug. 27, 2008.
The Military Operations and Intelligence Directorates function under the Chief of General Staff (CGS). A major reorganization in GHQ was done in September 2008 under General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, when two new PSO positions were introduced: the Inspector General Arms and the Inspector General Communications and IT, thus raising the number of PSO's to eight.[1]
The headquarters function also includes the Judge Advocate General (JAG), and the Controller of Civilian Personnel, the Chief of the Corps of Engineers (E-in-C) who is also head of Military Engineering Service (MES), all of them also report to the Chief of the Army Staff.
This post is held by the senior most and an experienced army officer, although the Chief of Army doesn't directly command but it has significant importance, the role of Chief of Army is to ensure the command of the whole of national army that includes:
Overseeing the army: The army chief is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the army, including training, discipline, equipment, and readiness.
Acting on orders: The army chief must carry out the orders of the Prime Minister or President, and may be responsible for implementing military action as directed.
Advising the government: The army chief provides advice to the government on matters of national security, and may be called upon to provide advice to the Prime Minister or President.
A division usually comprises three brigades including infantry, artillery, and engineers. Each division also has one or more armoured brigades, except mountain divisions. There are nineteen Infantry divisions, one Special Security Division, two mechanised divisions, two armoured divisions, one division-sized formation called Force Command Northern Areas, one engineer division, three artillery divisions (two are believed to possess ballistic missiles).
A brigade usually comprises three or more battalions of different types and is commanded by a brigadier. Some brigades are independent of divisions and report either to Corps HQ or Army HQ (e.g. 111 Bde).
The independent brigades include seven mechanised infantry brigades, eight armoured brigades, four artillery brigades, and nine engineer brigades:
105 Independent Infantry Brigade under V Corps
105 Air Defence Independent Brigade Group in XXXI Corps
The only active operations regiments (as opposed to administrative regiments) are training regiments. Colonels don't exercise command appointments except training commands, staff appointments, brigade executive officers and a few administrative establishment commands.
A battalion has about 600–900 soldiers and is commanded by a lieutenant colonel. This number varies depending on the type of subunits of the battalion. A battalion comprises either three batteries (artillery or air defence) or four companies (infantry) or three squadrons (armoured).
An intermediate between a company and section, a platoon is headed by a lieutenant or, depending on the availability of commissioned officers, a junior commissioned officer, with the rank of subedar major. It has a total strength of about 30–36 troops.
Smallest military outfit, with a strength of about 9–13 personnel. Commanded by a non-commissioned officer of the rank of subedar, depending upon the working conditions of the section.
In Pakistani military terminology, the regional commands are the temporary military formations that are structure based upon the conventional corps, and troop rotations are constant and varies based on the Pakistani war strategists' calculations.: 309 [2] The regional commands are led by the three-star rank general officer whose staff includes numbers of general officers.: 309 [2]
In past, the Eastern Command was organized at a corps-level conventional formation in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), consisting of the 9th Infantry Division, 14th Infantry Division, and 16th Infantry Division. These divisions are still active duty with their respected Regiments. To further support the Eastern Command, the 36th Adhoc Division and 39th Adhoc Division were commissioned to support the paramilitary units and police; and subsequently decommissioned after Eastern Command was de-activated.
To address the challenges and issues faced by the Cold Start strategy of Indian Army, the army formed regional commands to protect the North—South regions by establishing the first the Southern Command in 1999 and later the Northern Command in 2008.: 310 Other active regional formations includes the Army Strategic Forces Command and the Army Air Defence Command that serves as a platform of missile defense.: 311
^The Azad Kashmir Regiment was raised in 1947, became part of the army in 1971.
^The Punjab Regiment formed in 1956 from the 1st, 14th, 15th and 16th Punjab Regiments; can be traced back to the 3rd Battalion of Coast Sepoys raised in 1759.
^The Sindh Regiment was raised in 1980 from battalions of the Punjab Regiment and Baloch Regiment.
^The Baloch Regiment formed in 1956 from the 8th Punjab Regiment, The 10th Baloch Regiment, and The Bahawalpur Regiment; can be traced back to the 3rd Madras Battalion raised in 1798.
^The Frontier Force Regiment is the successor to the Frontier Brigade raised in 1846.
^The Northern Light Infantry was formed in 1977 from various paramilitary units of scouts, became part of the army in 1999 after the Kargil War.
^The Special Service Group was formed in 1959 around a cadre from the Baloch Regiment.
^The President's Bodyguard formed at independence from members of the Governor General's Bodyguard, itself successor to the Governor's Troop of Moghals raised in 1773.
^Guides Cavalry is the successor to the Corps of Guides raised in 1846.
^5th Horse is the successor to the 1st Sikh Irregular Cavalry (Wales's Horse), and the 2nd Sikh Irregular Cavalry, both raised in 1857.
^6th Lancers is the successor to The Rohilkhand Horse raised in 1857, and the 4th Sikh Irregular Cavalry raised in 1858.
^11th Cavalry (Frontier Force) is the successor to 1st Regiment of Punjab Cavalry and 3rd Regiment of Punjab Cavalry, both raised in 1849.
^13th Lancers is the successor to the 1st Native Troop raised in 1804, and the 2nd Native Troop raised in 1816. It is also the senior most armour regiment of the Indian Sub-Continent.
^19th Lancers is the successor to the 2nd Mahratta Horse (Tiwana Horse) raised in 1858, and Fane's Horse raised in 1860.
^25th Cavalry (Frontier Force) is the famous unit which stopped Indian armour thrust in Chawinda in 1965.
^29th Cavalry Regiment, nicknamed as 'Royal Bengal Tigers' was the armored regiment stationed in former East Pakistan. Entire regiment was lost in 1971 war and was raised later with nickname 'Tigers'. Currently the regiment forms part of 6th Armored Division and is stationed at Kharian.
