The Bangladesh Armed Forces are the military forces of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. They consist of the three uniformed military services: the Bangladesh Army, the Bangladesh Navy, and the Bangladesh Air Force. The Armed Forces are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defence of the Government of Bangladesh, and are directly administered by the Armed Forces Division of the Prime Minister's Office. The President of Bangladesh serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. Bangladesh has the third-largest defence budget in South Asia. The Bangladeshi military is also the 35th strongest in the world and the third most powerful military force in South Asia. Border Guard Bangladesh and Bangladesh Coast Guard are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Home Affairs during peacetime, but during wartime, they fall under the command of the Bangladesh Army and the Bangladesh Navy, respectively.
Operation Searchlight was a military operation carried out by the Pakistan Army in an effort to curb the Bengali nationalist movement in former East Pakistan in March 1971. Pakistan retrospectively justified the operation on the basis of anti-Bihari violence carried out en masse by the Bengalis earlier that month. Ordered by the central government in West Pakistan, the original plans envisioned taking control of all of East Pakistan's major cities on 26 March, and then eliminating all Bengali opposition, whether political or military, within the following month.
The Bangladesh Army is the land warfare branch, and the largest component of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. The primary mission of the Army is to defend the land of Bangladesh from any external attack. Control of personnel and operations is administered by the Army Headquarters, Dhaka Cantonment. The Bangladesh Army is also constitutionally obligated to assist the government, during times of domestic national emergency e.g. the army helps people during any natural calamity. This additional role is commonly referred to as "aid to civil administration" or, using the Latin form, "Protectio, Transparentia, Reintegratio", in other words, "Protect and Serve".
A cantonment is a military quarters. In India and other parts of South Asia, a cantonment refers to a permanent military station. In United States military parlance, a cantonment is, essentially, "a permanent residential section of a fort or other military installation," such as Fort Cavazos.
Abu Saleh Mohammad NasimBir Bikrom is a former Chief of Army Staff of the Bangladesh Army. In 1996, he attempted a military coup of the caretaker government which was preparing for general elections. After failure of the coup in 1996, he was arrested, placed under house arrest, and subsequently dismissed from service. That year, the Awami League was elected to power in the government. It reverted Nasim's dismissal from the military and later provided him with an honorable discharge.
Dhaka Cantonment is a cantonment located in the northern part of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The headquarters of the Bangladesh Army and Air Force are situated within the cantonment. The cantonment is located on the north-east end of Dhaka.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Bangladesh:
The Pakistani plan for a military action which commenced on 25 March 1971, in the then East Pakistan was code-named Operation Searchlight. This is the Operation Searchlight order of battle which was outlined on 19 March 1971, by Major General Khadim Hussain Raja, GOC 14th infantry division, and Major General Rao Farman Ali in the GHQ of Pakistan Army in Dhaka, (then) East Pakistan.
On 25 March 1971, the Pakistani military, supported by paramilitary units, launched the military operation to pacify the insurgent-held areas of East Pakistan, which led to a prolonged conflict with the Bengali Mukti Bahini. Although conventional in nature during March–May 1971, it soon turned into a guerrilla insurgency from June of that year. Indian Army had not directly supported the Bengali resistance but had launched Operation Jackpot to support the insurgency from May 1971.
The Eastern Command of the Pakistan Army was a corps-sized military formation headed by a lieutenant-general, who was designated the Commander Eastern Command. After the partition of India by United Kingdom, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was divided into two territories separated by 1,000 miles (1,600 km). Most of the assets of the Pakistan armed forces were stationed in West Pakistan; the role of the Pakistan armed forces in East Pakistan was to hold that part of the country until the Pakistani forces defeated India in the west. The Pakistan Army created the Eastern Command, with one commander in the rank of Lieutenant General responsible for the command. The armed forces, had drawn up a plan to defend Dhaka by concentrating all their forces along the Dhaka Bowl.
Prior to Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, India had no plans for large scale military action in East Pakistan. Since the Sino-Indian War of 1962, the primary objective of the Indian Army Eastern Command was the defence of the Indian northern and eastern borders, defending the "Shiliguri Corridor", and on combating insurgencies raging in Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur and the Naxalites in West Bengal.
Bandarban Cantonment is a cantonment located in Bandarban. The headquarters of 69th Infantry Brigade of Bangladesh Army is located here. It is one of five cantonments in Chittagong Hill Tracts area.
Ramu Cantonment is a cantonment located in Ramu of Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. It is the headquarters of 10th Infantry Division of Bangladesh Army. The area of the cantonment is 3000 acres.
Mustafizur Rahman was a Bangladeshi Army general who served as the Chief of Army Staff of the Bangladesh Army from December 1997 until 23 December 2000.
Jahangirabad Cantonment is a military base located in Bogra, near Bogra city bypass road. It is the HQ of 11th Artillery Brigade.
The 9th Infantry Division is a formation of the Bangladesh Army, based in Savar Cantonment, Savar, Dhaka. It is the first infantry division of the Bangladesh Army that was raised post-independence.
Department of Military Lands and Cantonments is the Government department responsible for the land management of cantonments in Bangladesh. Shamim Ahmed is the current Director General of Department of Military Lands and Cantonments.
The 11th Infantry Division is a formation of the Bangladesh Army based in Bogra Cantonment.
The 19th Infantry Division is a formation of the Bangladesh Army based in Shahid Salahuddin Cantonment, located at Ghatail Upazila, Tangail District, Bangladesh. The current GOC is Major General Hussain Muhammad Mashiur Rahman.
