Civil Armed Forces


The Civil Armed Forces are a group of nine paramilitary and gendarmerie organisations, separate and distinct from the regular Pakistan Armed Forces. They are responsible for maintaining internal security, helping law enforcement agencies, border control, counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism, riot control, and anti-smuggling under the Ministry of Interior. They frequently operate alongside the Pakistani military in response to natural disasters. During times of war they can have their command transferred to the Ministry of Defence, and effectively combined to form a reserve force for the Pakistani military.

History

Some CAF units were originally raised in the colonial era on the frontiers of the empire, and played a key role in the consolidation of control by building a link between the state and communities in strategically sensitive frontier areas through recruitment to government service. In many areas paramilitary units continue to play exactly the same historical role decades after independence.
The CAF are currently undergoing significant expansion, with 57 additional wings approved for raising in 2015–16 to address internal and border security challenges and to provide protection for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. This expansion is coordinated by a new two-star command established in September 2016, the Special Security Division.
The CAF are paid for from the budget of the Ministry of Interior which also provides administrative support. However they are commanded by officers on secondment from the Pakistan Army. They function under the operational control of army corps headquarters not only in wartime but also whenever Article 245 of the Constitution of Pakistan is invoked to provide “military aid to civil power”, as in Karachi since 2015 and in Punjab since February 2017.

List of forces

Civil Armed Forces (CAF)

Other Paramilitary Organisations

50 Aviation Squadron