National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) Report

Context: Recently, National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) released its report while highlighting the issues of

• Daily wage earners remained the largest profession-wise group among suicide victims in 2021.
• Significant rise in crimes against women and while chargesheet rate low.
• Rise in crime against children and POCSO accounts third highest crime against the children.
• Punjab has highest no of crimes rate under NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act
• There is increase in crime against scheduled tribes (STs) registration as increase of 4% from 8,272 cases in 2020 to 8,802 in 2021 whereas cases of atrocities against scheduled castes (SCs) registered an increase of 1.2% in 2021.

Significant rise in crimes against women and while chargesheet rate low:

• There is alarming rise of 40% in crimes against women and children however only 31% of IPC cases being charge sheeted.
• A rapid 111% jump in cases of cybercrimes.
• Majority of cases under crime against women under IPC were registered under ‘Cruelty by Husband or His Relatives’ (31.8 per cent) followed by ‘Assault on Women with Intent to Outrage her Modesty’ (20.8 per cent),
• Uttar Pradesh (56,083), Rajasthan (40,738) and Maharashtra (39,526) recorded the highest number of cases from state.
• In capital city, according to data, with 356 cases in 2021, there has been a 111% rise in cases of online fraud, online harassment, publication of explicit content, etc.

Daily wage earners remained the largest profession-wise group among suicide victims in 2021

• The report “Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India” shows that daily wage earners remained the largest profession-wise group among suicide victims in 2021, accounting for 42,004 suicides (25.6 per cent)
• At the national level, the number of suicides increased by 7.17 per cent from the years 2020 to 2021.
• However, the number of suicides in the daily wage group rose by 11.52 per cent during this period. Therefore, growth in suicide in daily wage in more than national average.
• According to the report, 10,881 suicides were recorded in the “Persons engaged in farming sector” group in 2021, including 5,318 under “farmer/cultivator” and 5,563 “agricultural labourers”.
• From the nationwide number in 2021, the maximum of 22,207 suicides were recorded in Maharashtra, followed by Tamil Nadu (18,925), Madhya Pradesh (14,956), West Bengal (13,500) and Karnataka (13,056). Among Union Territories, Delhi recorded the highest number of 2,840 suicides.

Punjab has highest no of crimes rate under NDPS Act

• Punjab again topped the list of crime rate (per lakh population) in cases lodged last year under the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act
• The report further showed that Himachal Pradesh — with a population of 74.06 lakh people as per NCRB — ended second on the list in the same category.

Rise in registered cases under UAPA

• 814 cases were registered under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) as compared to 796 cases in 2020 while 76 cases of sedition were registered in 2021 as compared to 73 in 2020.

National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB):

• NCRB was set-up in 1986 to function as a repository of information on crime and criminals to assist the investigators in linking crime to the perpetrators.
• It was recommended by Tandon Committee, National Police Commission (1977-1981) and the MHA’s Task force (1985).
• NCRB is entrusted with the responsibility for monitoring, coordinating, and implementing the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS) project.
• It is headquartered in New Delhi and is part of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• Its publications include:
  • Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India
  • Prison Statistics India
  • Fingerprints in India
  • Report on missing women and children in India

Source: Indian Express