The I Corps is a field corps of the Pakistan Army currently headquaretered in the Mangla Cantonment, Azad Kashmir in Pakistan.[2] Formed in 1957 as one of the tenth deployment and maneuver strike corps, it is a major ground formation and has seen deployments in the wars between India and Pakistan from 1965–71.: 64 [3]
| I Corps | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1957 |
| 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 | Mangla Cantonment, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan |
| Nickname(s) | Mangla Corps[1] |
| Colors Identification | Red, white and yellow |
| Anniversaries | 1957 |
| Engagements | Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 |
| Decorations | Military Decorations of Pakistan military |
| Commanders | |
| Commander | Lt-Gen. Nauman Zakaria |
| Notable commanders | Pervez Musharraf Bakhtiar Rana Nadeem Ahmad Shamsur Rahman Kallu Tariq Khan |
Currently, it is commanded by Lieutenant-General Nauman Zakaria.[4]
Brief history
editFormations, deployments, and war service
editAfter fighting battles briefly with the Indian Army in Kashmir during the 1947–48, there was need for discipline and control of the military units from local headquarters than the Army GHQ in Rawalpindi.: 64 [3]
Initially, it was established in Abbottabad Cantonment in 1957 with Lt-Gen. Azam Khan becoming its first field commander with an objective to maneuver the ground formations more effectively against the larger opposing force.: 64 [3] Later headquartered in Mangla Cantonment in Kashmir to strengthen the national defense lines, it is the first field corps in order of precedence of the Pakistan Army.[5]
In 1965, the I Corps, under Lt-Gen. Bakhtiar Rana, was deployed and fought against the approaching Indian Army's advances during the war in 1965, almost commanding the entire Pakistan army's troops in Punjab and Kashmir.[6]
In 1971, the I Corps, now under the command of Lt-Gen. Irshad Ahmed, saw its military deployments in Shakargarh sector and was supported with two infantry divisions and an armored brigade to support the defenses of Pakistan's eastern border, the Punjab.: 48 [7] The 15th Infantry Division was on the left side of the Corps' frontage around Sialkot with the 8th Infantry Division on the right, and 8th Armored Brigade in support.: 48 Further back, the Corps was additionally supported by the Pakistan Army Reserves, enforced by the 6th Armored Division and 17th Infantry Division.: 48 The Indian Army planned a major attack in the sector, which was managed by I Corps, but when the war broke out, the lead Indian Army's formation, 54th Infantry Division, only managed to advance a few kilometers– a total of 13 kilometres (8 mi) in two weeks of operations.: 48
Meanwhile, while the Indian army's attacks went on, the reserve formations did very little to respond tp such attack with the 6th Armored Division remained near Pasrur waiting for orders, while 17th Infantry Division had significant detachments sent off to 23rd Infantry Division on the left and IV Corps on the right.: 49 [8]
Yet the fighting in Shakargarh, while ultimately successful as the Indian army's aims were thwarted, resulted in 8th Armoured Brigade's heavy loss of armour and some territory was also lost.[9] As a result, its commander, Lt-Gen. Irshad Ahmed, was recommended for court martial and, later dismissal from his service.[9]
After the 1971 war with India, the I Corps has not seen military actions, and has been stationed in Mangla ever since and is well trained for forest warfare techniques.[9] As Pakistan's military strategic reserve, it was also not sent on overseas deployments under the United Nations with the allies.[10]
Structure
editSince 1971, the I Corps has not seen the military action but has supported through its units to enforce the Line of Control, on secondment to Northern Command. The I Corps is an integral in forming the Pakistan Army Reserves, and the other military units in supporting the I Corps are organized in formation known as the Army Reserves North.[10][6]
Its order of battle (ORBAT) is:
| Structure of I Corps | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corps | Corps HQ | Corps Commander | Assigned Units | Unit Badge | Unit HQ | ||||
| I Corps | Mangla | Lt.Gen Nauman Zakaria
|
6th Armoured Division | Gujranwala | |||||
| 17th Infantry Division | Kharian | ||||||||
| 37th Infantry Division, Kharian | Kharian | ||||||||
| Independent Infantry Brigade | U/I Location | ||||||||
| Independent Armoured Brigade | U/I Location | ||||||||
| Independent Artillery Brigade | U/I Location | ||||||||
| Independent Air Defence Brigade | U/I Location | ||||||||
| Independent Signal Brigade | U/I Location | ||||||||
| Independent Engineering Brigade | U/I Location | ||||||||
List of commanders
edit| # | Name | Start of tenure | End of tenure |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lt Gen Azam Khan | July 1957 | 1958 |
| 2 | Lt Gen Bakhtiar Rana | 1958 | 1966 |
| 3 | Lt Gen Abdul Hamid Khan | 1966 | March 1969 |
| 4 | Lt Gen Tikka Khan | March 1969 | August 1969 |
| 5 | Lt Gen Attiqur Rahman | August 1969 | February 1970 |
| 6 | Lt Gen Irshad Ahmed Khan | February 1970 | 1972 |
| 7 | Lt Gen Abdul Ali Malik | 1972 | 1974 |
| 8 | Lt Gen Azmat Baksh Awan | 1974 | March 1976 |
| 9 | Lt Gen Ghulam Hassan Khan | March 1976 | March 1980 |
| 10 | Lt Gen Hafiz Ayan Ahmed | March 1980 | April 1981 |
| 11 | Lt Gen Shah Rafi Alam | April 1981 | April 1982 |
| 12 | Lt Gen Shamsur Rahman Kallu | April 1982 | April 1986 |
| 13 | Lt Gen Mohammad Aslam Shah | April 1986 | May 1988 |
| 14 | Lt Gen Zulfikar Akhtar Naz | May 1988 | May 1992 |
| 15 | Lt Gen Khalid Latif Mughal | May 1992 | October 1995 |
| 16 | Lt Gen Pervez Musharraf | October 1995 | October 1998 |
| 17 | Lt Gen Saleem Haider | October 1998 | September 1999 |
| 18 | Lt Gen Tauqir Zia | September 1999 | April 2001 |
| 19 | Lt Gen Ghulam Mustafa | April 2001 | April 2002 |
| 20 | Lt Gen Javed Alam Khan | April 2002 | April 2006 |
| 21 | Lt Gen Sajjad Akram | April 2006 | April 2008 |
| 22 | Lt Gen Nadeem Ahmad | April 2008 | April 2010 |
| 23 | Lt Gen Mohammad Mustafa Khan | April 2010 | October 2010 |
| 24 | Lt Gen Tariq Khan | October 2010 | October 2014 |
| 25 | Lt Gen Hilal Hussain | October 2014 | September 2015 |
| 26 | Lt Gen Umar Farooq Durrani | September 2015 | April 2017 |
| 27 | Lt Gen Azhar Saleh Abbasi | April 2017 | October 2018 |
| 28 | Lt Gen Nadeem Zaki Manj | October 2018 | November 2019 |
| 29 | Lt Gen Shaheen Mazhar Mehmood | November 2019 | September 2022 |
| 30 | Lt.Gen Ayman Bilal Safdar | September 2022 | May 2024 |
| 31 | Lt Gen Nauman Zakaria | May 2024 | Incumbent |
References
edit- ^ "Azhar Abbasi promoted, posted as Mangla Corps Commander". pakobserver.net. Archived from the original on 10 January 2019. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
- ^ "COAS Visits Mangla Garrison". www.hilal.gov.pk. Archived from the original on 11 November 2023. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
- ^ a b c Fair, C. Christine (25 April 2014). Fighting to the End: The Pakistan Army's Way of War. Oxford University Press. p. 310. ISBN 978-0-19-989271-6. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
- ^ Syed, Baqir Sajjad (11 May 2024). "Peshawar, Mangla corps commanders appointed". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
- ^ 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 11 November 2023.
- ^ a b "I Corps". www.globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
- ^ Gill, An Atlas of the 1971 India-Pakistan War, NESA (NDU), p.48
- ^ Gill, p.49
- ^ a b c Brian Cloughly, A History of Pakistan Army
- ^ a b "Strategic Reserves of Pakistan" (PDF). Centre for Land Warfare Studies. 2011. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
Further reading
edit- Cloughley, Brian (1999). A History of the Pakistan Army: Wars and Insurrections. Karachi, Sind, Pakistan: Karachi University Press. ISBN 9780195790153.
External links
edit- GlobalSecurity.org, Global Security Website about the I Corps
- This shows the Formations Insignia