It has been 25 years since the establishment of the Armed Police Force (APF). It has been two and a half decades since the establishment of the Armed Police Force, which was formed with a dozen mandates, including controlling the activities of the then armed Maoist rebels and border security.

The Armed Forces are celebrating its Silver Jubilee across the country on Friday, marking the 25th anniversary of its establishment. On 9 Magh 2057, a law was enacted regarding the formation of the Armed Police Force through an ordinance. After the same ordinance was issued, the Armed Police Force was established through the transfer of human resources from the Nepal Army and Nepal Police, and after 2060, new recruitment was started and the armed human resources were managed.

The Armed Police Force Headquarters was established in the premises of the National Police Training Academy in Maharajgunj and AIG Krishna Mohan Shrestha, who was transferred from the Nepal Police, was made the founding Inspector General. The founding Inspector General Shrestha was killed by the Maoists in Bagdol, Lalitpur on 12 Magh 2059.

Officers, enlisted men and soldiers were transferred from the army to the Armed Forces under the leadership of Sanat Basnet. Basnet, who was transferred to the Armed Forces, later retired as the Inspector General of the Armed Forces.

Shailendra Thapa, Joint Spokesperson of the Armed Forces, said that in the 25 years of its establishment, the Armed Police Force has been working according to the mandate set by the state. "During its 25-year historical journey, the Armed Police Force has been effectively executing state-issued mandates, placing special emphasis on the organization's structural expansion, training, manpower development, and military discipline," said Joint Spokesperson Thapa.

When the force was established, it was mainly formed with 12 main mandates to control armed conflict that has occurred or may occur in any part of Nepal, control armed rebellion or separatist activities that have occurred or may occur in any part of Nepal, control terrorist activities, control riots, assist in the rescue of victims of natural disasters and epidemics, rescue the kidnapped person if any citizen or anyone else is kidnapped, or if any other heinous and serious crime occurs or is suspected of occurring, control Nepal's borders, provide assistance under the command of the Nepali Army in the event of an external attack, protect buildings, structures and other places of public importance designated by the Government of Nepal, protect persons and designated institutions designated by the Government of Nepal, and perform other tasks specified in accordance with the prevailing laws. Later, additional mandates including revenue and customs security, railway security, industrial security have been given to the armed forces. However, since the law was not reformed at the policy, structural and systemic level, the government has been using the armed forces as a tool.

For 25 years, the parliament has not been able to enact a law. After the formation of the Armed Police Force, 2 Constituent Assembly and 3 House of Representatives elections were held and various laws were made by the parliament, but the government has not prioritized amending the law of the armed forces. International border security was also included in the mandate of the armed forces in 12 mandates including terrorism. After that, the armed forces gradually expanded their mechanisms towards India and China and deployed in border security through the Border Security Office, then the armed forces deployed through the Border Department and the provincial level at the headquarters and the battalions/combatants under them and the border outposts in the border areas are currently deployed in 249 places towards India and 11 places towards China through BOPs.

The armed forces, which consisted of about 6,000 personnel at the time of establishment, have now increased to about 37,000. Since its establishment, 12 people have taken the leadership of the armed forces. However, concrete efforts have not been made by the government and the organization in structural reform and legal, policy and systemic development. The government has not been able to organize the law and jurisdiction according to the changing situation. The last time a bill to amend and unify the Armed Police Act was registered in the parliament on 15 Magh 2081, it could not be made into a law by the parliament.

The bill that was registered in the parliament last time with the dissolution of the House of Representatives on the basis of the Gen-G movement on 23 and 24 Bhadra is now in limbo. The bill introduced last year proposes to develop the law to include international border security and prevention and control of cross-border crime, international airport security, industrial zone and corridor security, railway security, customs and revenue leakage control assistance, drug control assistance, disaster search and rescue and management, security of individuals, establishments, public buildings, highways, projects of national pride and other places as specified by the Government of Nepal, rescue of kidnapped or hostages, crowd and riot control and management, tasks specified in accordance with prevailing laws, and other tasks specified by the Government of Nepal as its main tasks. Originally, it was intended to be developed as a force deployed at the forefront of Nepal's international border security, but the law was not passed by the parliament.