XXXI Corps
Badge of XXXI Corps
Active1986; 38 years ago (1986)
Country Pakistan
Branch Pakistan Army
TypeCorps
RoleManeuver and combined arms oversight.
Size45,000 approximately
(Though this may vary as units are rotated)
HQ/GarrisonBahawalpur Cantonment, Punjab in Pakistan
Nickname(s) Bahawalpur Corps[1]
Colors IdentificationRed and white
   
Anniversaries1986
DecorationsMilitary Decorations of Pakistan military
Commanders
CommanderLt-Gen. S. M. Malik
Notable
commanders		Gen. Shamim Alam
Lt-Gen. Mohammad Shafiq
Lt-Gen. Haroon Aslam
Maneuver Corps of the Pakistan Army
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XXX Corps Strategic Forces

The XXXI Corps is a field corps of the Pakistan Army, currently stationed in Bahawalpur, Punjab in Pakistan. [2]

It is currently commanded by Lt-Gen. Saqib Mehmood Malik as of 2023.[3]

History

The XXXI Corps was formed and raised as part of the major reorganization of the Pakistani military in 1985– it was one of the three corps that were formed to address the security in the country.[4] The XXXI Corps took over the area of responsibility of southern region of Punjab from the II Corps, which is more well suited for forestry warfare techniques.[2] It was initially headquartered in Pano Akil but later moved to Bahawalpur Cantonment as the corps headquarter.[5] Together with the V Corps in Sindh, the XXXI Corps is responsible for the maneuvering combat readiness in the southern Punjab's desert zone.[2]

In 2023, 35th Infantry Division attached to the XXXI Corps equipped with VCC-2 APCs were reportedly be taking part in anti-bandit operations near Bahawalpur alongside Punjab Police, based on social media and news reports. The police were also equipped with locally-made M113A1/A2 APCs.[6][7]

Structure

Its present order of battle is as follows:[8]

Structure of XXXI Corps
Corps Corps HQ Corps Commander Assigned Units Unit HQ
XXXI Corps Bahawalpur Lt. Gen Saqib Mehmood Malik
26th Mechanized Division Bahawalpur
35th Infantry Division Bahawalpur
14th Infantry Division Okara
101st Independent Infantry Brigade U/I Location
14th Independent Armored Brigade Bahawalpur
Independent Artillery Brigade U/I Location
Independent Engineering Brigade U/I Location
Independent Signal Brigade U/I Location

List of Commanders XXXI Corps

Corps Commander Start Date End Date
Lt Gen Saqib Mehmood Malik 4 December 2022 Incumbent
Lt Gen Faiz Hameed 9th Aug 2022 3 December 2022
Lt Gen Khalid Zia Nov 2020 8 August 2022
Lt Gen Syed Muhammad Adnan April 2019 Nov 2020
Lt Gen Javed Mehmood Bukhari August 2018 April 2019
Lt Gen Sher Afgun December 2016 August 2018
Lt Gen Javed Iqbal Ramday April 2015 December 2016
Lt Gen Javed Iqbal December 2013 April 2015
Lt Gen Zubair Mahmood Hayat January 2013 December 2013
Lt Gen Muhammad Haroon Aslam March 2011 January 2013
Lt Gen Naeem Khalid Lodhi October 2009 March 2011
Lt Gen Muhammad Yousaf October 2008 October 2009
Lt Gen Raza Mohammad Khan April 2007 October 2008
Lt Gen Imtiaz Hussain May 2005 April 2007
Lt Gen Syed Parwez Shahid September 2003 May 2005
Lt Gen Shahid Hamid October 2001 September 2003
Lt Gen Munir Hafiez August 2000 October 2001
Lt Gen Tahir Ali Qureshi October 1998 August 2000
Lt Gen Muzaffar Hussain Usmani May 1997 October 1998
Lt Gen Khalid Nawaz Malik January 1996 May 1997
Lt Gen Iftikhar Ali Khan June 1993 January 1996
Lt Gen Muhammad Akram Khan August 1991 May 1993
Lt Gen Shamim Alam Khan April 1991 August 1991
Lt Gen Mohammad Shafiq March 1988 April 1991

References

  1. ^ "COAS visits formations of Bahawalpur Corps". brecorder.com.
  2. ^ a b c "XXXI Corps". www.globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  3. ^ "General Asim Munir kicks off Pakistan army's game of thrones with major reshuffle". WION.
  4. ^ 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 29 November 2023.
  5. ^ Sathasivam, Kanishkan (24 October 2017). Uneasy Neighbors: India, Pakistan and US Foreign Policy. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-351-87682-7. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  6. ^ Haq, Irfanul (10 April 2023). "'Grand operation' against katcha area outlaws starts in Punjab". Dawn. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
  7. ^ @FarooqB90714421 (16 April 2023). "PA VCC-2s from 35 Div taking part in Kacha Anti-Dacoit Op in Lower Punjab Region. Plus a M113A1/A2 HIT Up-Armoured with Punjab police" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  8. ^ Global Security website page on XXXI Corps

Further reading

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