NCRB 2022 report on crime in India

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) released its annual report on crime in India for the year 2022. The report has crime statistics from across the country. 

NCRB

• Functions under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, include statistics on offences ranging from crimes against women to economic and financial crimes.
• The NCRB was established in January 1986 as a body mandated to compile and keep records of data on crime. It also acts as a “national warehouse” for the fingerprint records of Indian and foreign criminals, and assists in locating interstate criminals through fingerprint search.
• For the NCRB’s flagship annual Crime in India reports, information is obtained from the police forces of 36 states and Union Territories. Similar data are furnished for 53 cities with populations exceeding 10 lakh each as per the 2011 Census, by respective state-level crime records bureaus.
• The information is entered by state/UT police at the level of the local police station, and is validated at the levels of the district and state, and finally, by the NCRB.
• Because of a range of reasons, including the fear of an uncooperative or a hostile response from the police, certain groups may not be willing to come forward and register cases. And a shortage of police officers or unfilled vacancies in the relevant posts at the local level may hinder the collection of data.

Overview of the 2022 NCRB Report

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) released its annual report detailing crime statistics in India for the year 2022. The report covers a broad spectrum of crimes, including those against women, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), cybercrimes, and more.

Crime Trends and Numbers

In 2022, a total of 58,24,946 cognizable crimes were reported, comprising 35,61,379 Indian Penal Code (IPC) crimes and 22,63,567 Special & Local Laws (SLL) crimes. This represented a 4.5% decline from the previous year. The crime rate, measured as crimes registered per lakh population, decreased from 445.9 in 2021 to 422.2 in 2022.

Crimes Against Women

Crime against women increased by 4% in 2022, with 4,45,256 cases reported. The majority of these cases fell under categories such as 'Cruelty by Husband or His Relatives' (31.4%), 'Kidnapping & Abduction of Women' (19.2%), and 'Assault on Women with Intent to Outrage her Modesty' (18.7%).

Cybercrimes on the Rise

The reporting of cybercrimes saw a significant increase of 24.4% compared to 2021, with 65,893 cases. Fraud constituted the majority of these cases (64.8%), followed by extortion (5.5%) and sexual exploitation (5.2%).

Suicides and Contributing Factors

The report noted a 4.2% increase in reported suicides in 2022 (1,70,924 suicides) compared to the previous year. Major contributing factors included 'Family Problems (other than marriage-related problems)' (31.7%), 'Marriage-Related Problems' (4.8%), and 'Illness' (18.4%). The male-to-female ratio of suicide victims was 71.8:28.2.

Data Compilation Process

The NCRB compiles data from police forces across states and Union Territories. The information is entered at the local police station level, validated at district and state levels, and finally by the NCRB.

State-wise Trends

States and Union Territories with the highest chargesheeting rates under IPC crimes included Kerala (96.0%), Puducherry (91.3%), and West Bengal (90.6%). It's important to note that this indicates the percentage of cases where charges were framed against the accused, not the actual crime incidence.

Limitations of Data and Reporting

The NCRB report acknowledges that the data record registered crime, not the actual occurrence of crime. The 'Principal Offence Rule' and limitations at the local level, including potential underreporting due to various reasons, impact the accuracy of the report.