Police Ranks in Pakistan

Police Ranks in Pakistan: Responsibilities and Pay Scales

The police in Pakistan functions as an organized body of personnel responsible for maintaining law and order, preventing and investigating crimes, and collecting intelligence, among other duties. In this blog, we will focus on the police force ranks in Pakistan, their responsibilities, and basic pay scales.

Since police legislation is a provincial subject in Pakistan, traditional policing is the responsibility of the provinces and territories. The main police departments in Pakistan include:

Islamabad Capital Police for Islamabad Capital Territory
Punjab Police for Punjab province
Sindh Police for Sindh province
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province
Balochistan Police for Balochistan province

All of these police departments in Pakistan have similar organizational structures, responsibilities, characteristics, as well as training and recruiting processes.

Here are the police force ranks in Pakistan, listed in ascending order with the highest positions at the end.

The police force ranks in Pakistan are usually divided into two categories: Junior and Senior ranks. Moreover, much like the ranks of armed forces in Pakistan, each police force rank has its own distinct insignia. The serving personnel usually wear it on the shoulder of their uniforms.

Junior Police Ranks in Pakistan

In Pakistan, a district is considered the basic territorial division. Each district is then divided into subdivisions, which are further divided into police stations. Every police station is then divided into certain beats. The junior officials, such as Constables, Head Constables, and Assistant Sub-Inspectors are assigned tasks such as patrolling, surveillance, and gathering intelligence. In smaller districts and rural areas, the Sub-Inspector of Police usually serves as the Station House Officer (SHO). In larger and densely populated areas, the Inspector of Police is appointed as the SHO. Moreover, if an area has high incidences of crimes, a police station is further divided into police outposts.

It is also important to point out that SHO is a post, not a rank. That means, in certain cases, officials with lower police ranks in Pakistan may also serve at higher posts.

Constable: A Constable is the junior staff of a police station. The age requirement for this rank is between 18 and 26 years. The basic pay scale or grade of constables in police is between BPS 5 and BPS 7, depending on the province. The minimum police qualification in Pakistan for this rank is Matriculation.
Head Constable: The rank of a Head Constable is higher than that of a constable. The basic pay scale or grade of head constables in Pakistan Police varies between BPS 7 and BPS 9.
Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police (ASI): The Assistant Sub-Inspector ranks higher than the constable and head constable in the police station. The civil service grade of this rank in police ranges from BPS 9 to BPS 11.
Sub-Inspector of Police (SI): A sub-inspector can either be in charge of a small police station in a rural or suburban area, or serve as the staff of a police station in bigger towns and cities. The basic pay scale for this police force rank in Pakistan is BPS 14.
Inspector of Police (IP): Police inspectors are assigned to head police stations and serve as SHOs. The civil service grade for this rank is BPS 16.

Senior Police Force Ranks in Pakistan

Each province in Pakistan is subdivided into regions, which are further divided into districts. Every district in Pakistan has a District Police Officer (DPO) who is essentially the head of police in that area. The DPO reports directly to the Regional Police Officer (RPO) or City Police Officer (CPO), who in turn reports to the Provincial Police Officer (PPO). Much like SHO, DPO, RPO, CPO, and PPO are also posts, not police ranks in Pakistan.

Assistant/Deputy Superintendent of Police (ASP/DSP): Each district in Pakistan consists of two or more sub-divisions. The Assistant or Deputy Superintendent of Police is in charge of a sub-division in a district. Since the civil service grade for this rank is BPS 17, ASPs and DSPs are actually gazetted officers. The minimum police qualification in Pakistan for this rank is a Bachelor’s degree (14 years of formal education) from an accredited university. The age requirement for this rank is between 21 and 28 years old.
Superintendent of Police (SP): The Superintendent of Police is in charge of a non-field post at police headquarters. The basic pay scale for this police force rank in Pakistan is BPS 18.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP): The Senior Superintendent of Police either serves as the DPO or at a non-field post at police headquarters. The civil service grade of the rank of SSP in Pakistan is BPS 19.
Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG): The Deputy Inspector General of Police serves as the RPO or CPO or as in charge of a non-field branch, division, or wing. The basic pay scale for this rank in Pakistan police is BPS 20.
Additional Inspector General of Police (AIG or Addl. IG): The Additional Inspector General is responsible for a region or capital city. The personnel bearing this rank may also head a non-field branch, division, or wing. Their civil service grade is BPS 21. Sometimes, the abbreviation AIG is also used for Assistant Inspector General, which has the same civil service grade as that of an SSP.
Inspector General of Police (IGP): The Inspector General is the highest police force rank in Pakistan. An IGP is in charge of provincial and administrative police establishments and serves as a PPO. This rank has a civil service grade of BPS 21 or 22, making it a three-star appointment.

This brings an end to our guide detailing the official police ranks in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, you can take a look at our comprehensive guides on the National Highway and Motorway Police as well as the Airport Security Force of Pakistan to learn more about these agencies.

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Disclaimer: Please note that the above information and insignia have been extracted from the official police websites in Pakistan.

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Police Ranks in Pakistan