The V Corps is a field corps of the Pakistan Army currently headquartered in Karachi, Sindh in Pakistan. Its current mission objectives are to provide security and external security deployments within its area of responsibility.[2] One of Pakistan army's ten field corps, it has an area of responsibility and responsibility to protect of Sindh region.: 310
| V Corps | |
|---|---|
 Badge of V Corps | |
| Active | 1975 |
| Country |  Pakistan |
| Branch |  Pakistan Army |
| Type | XXX Corps |
| Role | Maneuver/Deployment oversight. |
| Size | ~45,000 approximately (Though this may vary as units are rotated) |
| HQ/Garrison | Karachi Cantonment, Sindh, Pakistan |
| Nickname(s) | Karachi Corps[1] |
| Colors Identification | Red, white and gold |
| Anniversaries | 1975 |
| Decorations | Military Decorations of Pakistan military |
| Commanders | |
| Commander | Lt-Gen. Babar Iftikhar |
| Chief of Staff | Brig. Zill E Husnain. |
| Notable commanders | Gen. A. S. Hyat Gen. Asif Nawaz Lt-Gen. Arif Bangash Lt.Gen.Zaheerul Islam Lt-Gen. Naveed Mukhtar Lt-Gen. Nadeem Anjum |
| Insignia | |
| War Flag |  |
As of current, the corps is commanded by Lt-Gen. Babar Iftikhar.[3]
History
editFormation and war service
editAs part of major re-organization of the Pakistani military, the Army GHQ raised the corps formation with a mission parameter to protect and intercept any Indian Army's attempt to disrupt the North-South landline link between Karachi and Lahore.[4][2]
Despite its role, the V Corps has not seen active conflict with Indian Army but has provided its expertise in desert warfare while providing assistance to Sindh's police department to contain the local dacoits and law enforcements in Karachi by deploying the Army Rangers.[4]The V Corps is the only strike corps of the army in Sindh; it has area of responsibility and protect the entire province of Sindh.[5]
In 1999, the V Corps was a major part of North-South regional formation, falling under the Southern Command together with the XII Corps but this short-lived due to confusion among the commanders.: 309 [6] The Southern Command now exclusively includes the XII Corps.: 309 [6]
Despite its strike and combat role, The V Corps has been deployed by the Army GHQ to aide and assist the federal government as part of the military aid to the civil power to help and better prepare for natural disasters with its 18th Infantry Division being involved in establishing relief camps and evacuating people living near the coastline.[7][8][9]
Structure
edit| Structure of V Corps | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corps | Corps HQ | Corps Commander | Assigned Units | Unit HQ | |||||
| V Corps | Karachi | Lt. Gen. Babar Iftikhar
|
16th Infantry Division: | Pano Aqil | |||||
| 18th Infantry Division: | Hyderabad | ||||||||
| 25th Mechanized Division: | Malir | ||||||||
| 31st Mechanized Brigade | Hyderabad | ||||||||
| 2nd Armored Brigade | Malir | ||||||||
| Independent Artillery Brigade | N/A | ||||||||
| Independent Signal Brigade | N/A | ||||||||
| Independent Engineering Brigade | N/A | ||||||||
List of corps commanders
edit| # | Name | Start of tenure | End of tenure |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lt Gen Mohammad Akbar Khan | 1974 | March 1976 |
| 2 | Lt Gen Jehanzeb Arbab | March 1976 | January 1978 |
| 3 | Lt Gen Iqbal Khan | January 1978 | September 1978 |
| 4 | Lt Gen S.M. Abbasi | September 1978 | March 1980 |
| 5 | Lt Gen Ahmad Jamal Khan | March 1980 | March 1984 |
| 6 | Lt Gen Ahmad Shamim Khan | March 1984 | March 1988 |
| 7 | Lt Gen Asif Nawaz | March 1988 | March 1991 |
| 8 | Lt Gen Arif Bangash | March 1991 | 1992 |
| 9 | Lt Gen Naseer Akhtar | 1992 | 1994 |
| 10 | Lt Gen Lehrasab Khan | 1994 | May 1997 |
| 11 | Lt Gen Afzal Janjua | May 1997 | October 1998 |
| 12 | Lt Gen Muzaffar Hussain Usmani | October 1998 | May 2001 |
| 13 | Lt Gen Tariq Wasim Ghazi | May 2001 | January 2004 |
| 14 | Lt Gen Ahsan Saleem Hyat | January 2004 | October 2004 |
| 15 | Lt Gen Syed Atahar Ali | October 2004 | April 2006 |
| 16 | Lt Gen Ahsan Azhar Hyat | April 2006 | October 2008 |
| 17 | Lt Gen Shahid Iqbal | October 2008 | October 2010 |
| 18 | Lt Gen Zaheerul Islam | October 2010 | March 2012 |
| 19 | Lt Gen Ijaz Chaudhry | March 2012 | November 2013 |
| 20 | Lt Gen Sajjad Ghani | November 2013 | October 2014 |
| 21 | Lt Gen Naveed Mukhtar | October 2014 | December 2016 |
| 22 | Lt Gen Shahid Baig Mirza | December 2016 | August 2018 |
| 23 | Lt Gen Humayun Aziz | August 2018 | December 2020 |
| 24 | Lt Gen Nadeem Ahmed Anjum | December 2020 | November 2021 |
| 25 | Lt Gen Muhammad Saeed | November 2021 | December 2022 |
| 26 | Lt Gen Babar Iftikhar | December 2022 | - |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Karachi Corps Commander News". tribune.com.pk. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
- ^ a b "V Corps". www.globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ "One-third of corps commanders replaced in major reshuffle". dawn.com. 25 August 2018. Archived from the original on 19 June 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
- ^ a b Ganguly, Šumit; O'Donnell, Frank (28 October 2022). Routledge Handbook of the International Relations of South Asia. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-75552-7. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ Alam, Dr Shah (1 July 2012). Pakistan Army: Modernisation, Arms Procurement and Capacity Building. Vij Books India Pvt Ltd. ISBN 978-93-81411-79-7. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ a b Nawaz, Shuja (10 April 2020). The Battle for Pakistan: The Bitter US Friendship and a Tough Neighbourhood. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-5381-4205-9. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
- ^ "GOC Hyderabad Visits Relief Camps Of Sujawal District". bolnews.com. 14 June 2023. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
- ^ "Pakistan Army troops engage in evacuation, relief activities amid Biparjoy". app.com.pk. 14 June 2023. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
- ^ "Under no circumstances people will be left alone: Karachi corps commander". dunyanews.tv. 13 June 2023. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
Further reading
edit- Cloughley, Brian (1999). A History of the Pakistan Army: Wars and Insurrections. Karachi, Sind, Pakistan: Karachi University Press. ISBN 9780195790153.