Orakzai Scouts

The Orakzai Scouts is a paramilitary regiment forming part of the Frontier Corps Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (North) in Pakistan. The name alludes to the Orakzai tribe and the Orakzai Agency (now a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province). The regiment had a 2020/21 budget of Rs. 1.83 billion[4] and is composed of a headquarters wing with six battalion-sized manoeuvre wings and a special operations group.

Orakzai Scouts
Founded1972[1]
Country Pakistan
BranchCivil Armed Forces
Size6 wings
Part ofFrontier Corps Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (North)
Regimental centreKalaya, Orakzai District[1]
EngagementsInsurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Commanders
CommandantTasneem Khan[2]
Previous CommandantRai Kashif Amin[3]

History

The regiment was raised in 1972.[1] The Scouts have been involved in anti-drug smuggling operations.

Operation Khwakh Ba De Sham

Between 2009-2010 Orakzai Scouts along with troops from other branches of Frontier Corps and Pakistan Army launched operation against militants of the TTP, codenamed as Operation Khwakh Ba De Sham. The Offensive was meant to flush out militants from the Upper Orakzai, Lower Orakzai and Kurram. Operation resulted in the Pakistani victory with killing of 2500 militants and subsequent restoration of Pakistani writ on the Orakzai and Kurram.

In 2011-2012, the unit received a number of drug testing kits, through a United Nations programme, to assist in their work against drug smuggling.[5] One initiative in August 2021 saw the Scouts 235 Wing organise training to help farmers find alternatives to poppy cultivation such as mushroom farming.[6]

The regiment has been involved in combatting the insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Shortly after the start of Operation Khyber by the Pakistani military, eight soldiers were killed in November 2014, when militants attacked a check post. Twenty militants were killed in an immediate counterattack by the regiment.[7]

In July 2019 members of the regiment helped rescue up to 47 injured people and retrieved the bodies of 8 children, after they became trapped in a collapsed house following a rainstorm.[8]

The regiment has also engaged in local culture recently. In partnership with provincial and local government bodies in March 2022, it organised a two-day local sports festival in Kalaya including a kabbadi competition.[3][9] The Commandant attended a motoring event in December 2022.[2]

Role

The Orakzai Scouts serves as the first line of defence as force is responsible for the patrolling portions of Kurram District and Tirah Valley of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border that cuts through Kurram and Khyber districts on Pakistani side whereas Nangarhar and Paktia on Afghanistan side. Additionally, the Orakzak Scouts provides security to the key installations located across the Kohat Division such as tunnels, dams, and military installations. the Scouts has played a prominent role against terrorism. The force also assists local Law Enforcement Agencies in the maintenance of law and order across the Kohat region.

  • Border Patrolling.
  • Assist Army/FCNA in the defense of the country as and when required.
  • Protect important communication centers and routes.
  • Undertake counter militancy/criminal/terrorism operations on orders.
  • Assist law enforcement agencies in maintenance of law and order.
  • Safeguard important sites and assets

During times of extraordinary law and order crisis, the government may grant powers to the Orakzai Scouts to arrest and detain a criminals.

Units

References
  1. "Making history: Orakzai Scouts to be permanently deployed". The Express Tribune. 10 December 2013. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  2. "Car, motorcycle rally held to promote peace". The Nation. 11 December 2022. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  3. "Two-day Orakzai Festival concludes". Pakistan Observer. 21 March 2022. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  4. "Federal Budget 2020–2021: Details of demands for grants and appropriations" (PDF). National Assembly of Pakistan. p. 2540. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  5. "Equipping Pakistan's Law Enforcement For Interdiction" (PDF). United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  6. "KP govt starts mushroom cultivation to promote high-income, legal work". Pakistan Today. 21 August 2021. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  7. "Check post attacked: Eight troops, 20 militants killed in Orakzai clash". The Express Tribune. 2 November 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  8. "Eight children among 14 killed in rain-related incidents in KP". Dawn. 19 July 2019. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  9. "Orakzai sports, culture festival concludes amid fun". Daily Times. 22 March 2022. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  10. "The Gazette of Pakistan. Part III" (PDF). Government of Pakistan. 4 May 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  11. "The Gazette of Pakistan. Part III" (PDF). Government of Pakistan. 20 January 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  12. "The Gazette of Pakistan. Part III" (PDF). Government of Pakistan. 20 September 2019. p. 116. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  13. "The Gazette of Pakistan. Part III" (PDF). Government of Pakistan. 19 August 2020. p. 659. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
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