100 YEARS OF FRONTIER CONSTABULARY. July 11, 2014 (2014-06)

The name of Frontier Constabulary cannot be separated. from bravery, valour, courage and determination. FC is known worldwide for its unmatchable skills to fight against the odds of the worst kind. The name of FC is written with golden words in the annals of the law enforcement in Pakistan. From fight against militancy to general law and order, FC has always been a front force in the line of action.

Year 2013 marked hundred years of establishment of Frontier Constabulary. Created in 1913, by the amalgamation of Border Military Police (BMP) and Samana Rifles (SR), it was envisaged to protect the settled districts of the then North-West Frontier Province, modern day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, from any incursion of desperate bands of looters from the adjoining tribal belt. Frontier Constabulary, governed under the Frontier Constabulary Act of 1915 and N-WFC rules 1958, is headed by a Commandant, a Basic Pay Scale (BPS) 21 officer, and is considered one of the most prestigious and revered posting in Police Service of Pakistan. From R.C. Boyle, the first Commandant of FC, to the incumbent Abdul Majeed Marwat, some of the finest Police Officers have led this force.

The command structure of FC revolves around its basic unit called FC District. Each FC district is under the command of a District Officer (DO). The first district of FC was established in 1913 while the most recent one is the Corps Head Quarters (CHQ) Peshawar raised as a district in 2004. Today, FC has seventeen districts stretching across the length and breadth of the country. Frontier Constabulary is a tribal based force and almost all the major clans of Pathans have a representation in FC. The basic structure of FC is a "Platoon" and one FC platoon comprises of forty three men.

FC has five hundred and forty seven platoons and performing functions beyond its initially visualized role as a border police. More than seventy platoons of FC are assisting KP Police in maintaining law and order throughout the province. One hundred and thirty three platoons are helping Pakistan Army in combating militancy in Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) and KP. Forty five platoons of FC are serving with Sindh Government and providing security to vital installations. The security of major prisons in Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur is entrusted to FC. Basides, FC platoons are deployed in Islamabad to protect the diplomatic enclave and other key buildings in the capital. More than forty platoons of FC are deployed with the multi-national companies (MNCs) and hydro power projects. Six platoons of FC are deployed in Gilgit Baltistan. Apart from assisting the GB government in maintaining law and order, FC has a key role in security of Kara Kurram Highway (KKH). FC helped the government in peaceful conduct of 2013 general elections. More than two thousand FC personnel have provided security to polio workers in the polio eradication campaign in Peshawar and FATA.

Frontier Constabulary has been a front line force in the battle against terrorists. It has proved its mettle on a number of occasions. Be it the operation 'Spring Cleaning' in Pastawana in FR Peshawar or 'Operation Kala Dhaka' in KP, FC has stood second to none when it comes to defending the country against the non-state elements. In its endeavor to protect the mother land, FC is not behind any other law enforcement agency in the country and has so far lost three hundred & thirty six (336) officers and jawans, Mr. E.C. Handy Side, the second Commandant of FC from 1921 to 1926, was martyred while fighting a band of dacoits. Safwat Ghayour was one of the most inspiring and courageous Police officer the country has ever seen. Safwat Ghayour was the commandant of FC when his vehicle was hit by a suicide bomber in 2010. He embraced Shahadat and the country lost a brave son and FC an adorable General.

Frontier Constabulary is a time tested force and proved its mettle in the most challenging battlefields. The soldiers of FC, being brought up in the most rugged terrains of the world, are ideal fighters on their own turf. The gloabl terrorist network is in one way or the other linked to the western border region of Pakistan. Personnel of FC, tendered by nature, are the most efficient force in this area. It is need of the hour to modernize FC and equip it with the state of the art gadgetry to make it more dynamic and professional force. Rudyard Kipling described FC in his words, "a force ready to take the field at ten minutes' notice". But today it is a force willing to take the enemy at one minute notice.

On the occasion of 100 years of Frontier Constabulary a commemorative postage stamp of Rs.8/- denomination is being issued by Pakistan Post on July 11, 2014.