This is the sheet that distinguishes CAPF preparation from any generic exam. The written paper rewards clean static recall of the forces, the laws and the borders; the interview board expects fluency in the same plus a human-rights sensibility. One screen per section. For sanctioned strengths, battalion counts and vacancies, verify the latest MHA Annual Report.
| Force |
Raised |
Founding Act |
Primary mandate |
Principal deployment |
| CRPF |
1939 (renamed 1949) |
CRPF Act, 1949 |
Internal security, anti-Naxal, law and order |
Across India; LWE belt; J&K; elections |
| BSF |
1965 |
BSF Act, 1968 |
Guarding India-Pakistan and India-Bangladesh land borders |
Western and eastern land borders |
| CISF |
1969 |
CISF Act, 1968 |
Security of installations, airports, metros, ports |
Airports, nuclear and space sites, metros |
| ITBP |
1962 |
ITBP Act, 1992 |
India-China border, high-altitude guarding |
Himalayan frontier (the LAC) |
| SSB |
1963 (reconstituted 2003) |
MHA reconstitution, 2003 |
Guarding open India-Nepal and India-Bhutan borders |
India-Nepal and India-Bhutan borders |
The CRPF is the largest CAPF. All five are under the Ministry of Home Affairs. See the five capfs in depth.
| Force |
Note |
| Assam Rifles |
Oldest paramilitary force (1835); India-Myanmar border; dual control (MHA administrative, Army operational) |
| NSG |
"Black Cat" commandos; counter-terror and counter-hijack; raised 1984 |
| NDRF |
Disaster response; raised 2006 under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 |
| RPF |
Railway Protection Force; security of railway property and passengers |
| Special Protection Group (SPG) |
Protection of the Prime Minister |
Note: the CAPFs are not "paramilitary forces" in the strict sense; Assam Rifles and the Coast Guard sit under different control arrangements. Use "Central Armed Police Forces" for the five MHA forces.
| Line |
Between |
| Radcliffe Line |
India and Pakistan / India and Bangladesh |
| Line of Control (LoC) |
India and Pakistan (Jammu and Kashmir) |
| Line of Actual Control (LAC) |
India and China |
| McMahon Line |
India and China (eastern sector, Arunachal) |
| Durand Line |
Pakistan and Afghanistan |
| International Border (IB) |
The settled, demarcated stretch of the India-Pakistan border |
See india borders neighbours and strategic geography and border management of india.
| Neighbour |
Approx border |
Guarding force |
| Bangladesh |
Longest land border |
BSF |
| China |
Long Himalayan frontier |
ITBP (and the Army on the LAC) |
| Pakistan |
Western border |
BSF (LoC managed with the Army) |
| Nepal |
Open border |
SSB |
| Bhutan |
Open border |
SSB |
| Myanmar |
Eastern border |
Assam Rifles |
| Afghanistan |
Short stretch (in PoK) |
(not effectively held by India) |
"One Border, One Force" is the governing principle for single-agency accountability on each frontier. See concept one border one force.
| Law |
What it does |
| Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) |
India's principal anti-terror law; allows designation of terrorists and organisations |
| Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) |
Special powers in "disturbed areas"; applies to the armed forces and some CAPF deployments |
| National Security Act (NSA), 1980 |
Preventive detention |
| Disaster Management Act, 2005 |
Created NDMA and NDRF |
| Article 355 / 356 |
Union duty to protect States; President's Rule |
| Article 33 |
Parliament may restrict the fundamental rights of the forces |
See concept afspa and human rights and internal security.
| Threat |
Response / note |
| Left-Wing Extremism (Naxalism) |
CRPF and CoBRA; the "Red Corridor"; SAMADHAN doctrine |
| Cross-border terrorism (J&K) |
Army, CRPF and J&K Police; LoC management by the Army and BSF |
| Insurgency in the North-East |
Assam Rifles and the Army; AFSPA in disturbed areas |
| Infiltration and smuggling |
BSF border fence, floodlighting, BOLD-QIT technology |
| Cyber and radicalisation |
Coordinated by the NIA, IB and the National Cyber agencies |
| Safeguard |
Anchor |
| NHRC |
Statutory under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993; chair is a former CJI or SC judge |
| Article 21 |
Right to life and personal liberty (cannot be denied even in operations) |
| D K Basu guidelines |
Supreme Court arrest and detention safeguards |
| Geneva Conventions / IHL |
Treatment of combatants and civilians; ICRC mandate |
| Minimum force and proportionality |
The doctrine for the use of force in aid of the civil power |
For the CAPF, internal-security operations must be lawful and proportionate; the interview tests whether you can hold "firmness with restraint". See human rights and internal security and internal security architecture of india.
| Item |
Fact |
| Param Vir Chakra |
Highest wartime gallantry award |
| Ashoka Chakra |
Highest peacetime gallantry award |
| Police Medal for Gallantry |
For conspicuous gallantry in police and CAPF service |
| Police Commemoration Day |
21 October (Hot Springs, Ladakh, 1959) |
| CRPF Valour Day |
9 April (Sardar Post, 1965) |
- Know the raising year, Act and mandate of all five forces cold; this is the highest-yield CAPF-specific block.
- Pair every force with its border or role, and every border with its line and its guarding force.
- Always be able to add the human-rights and "minimum force" qualifier; the board marks for balance, not bravado.
- Convert any internal-security headline into static facts (who, where, which Act) for the paper.