Crime in India 2024: NCRB Data on Crime, Cyber and Suicides
Why in the news
The National Crime Records Bureau released Crime in India 2024 together with Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India (ADSI) 2024. The picture was mixed: overall crime and crimes against SCs and STs fell, but cybercrime and offences against the state climbed, and suicides stayed high among distressed groups.
Key facts – Crime in India 2024
- Total cognisable crimes: 58.86 lakh, a 6% fall from 2023; 35.44 lakh under IPC/BNS and 23.41 lakh under special and local laws.
- Cybercrime: 1,01,928 cases against 86,420 in 2023 (up about 17%).
- Offences against the state: 5,194 cases, up 6.6% from 4,873.
- Crimes against SCs: 55,698 cases (down 3.6%); against STs: 9,966 cases (down 23.1%).
| Indicator | 2023 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cybercrime cases | 86,420 | 1,01,928 | Up over 17% |
| Offences against the state | 4,873 | 5,194 | Up 6.6% |
| Crimes against SCs | 57,789 | 55,698 | Down 3.6% |
| Crimes against STs | 12,960 | 9,966 | Down 23.1% |
| Drug-overdose deaths | 650 | 978 | Up 50% |
Cybercrime and state-offence split
- Within cybercrime: fraud 72.6% (73,987 cases), sexual exploitation 3.1% (3,190), extortion 2.5% (2,536).
- Within offences against the state: 84.6% under the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and 12.5% under UAPA.
Key facts – ADSI 2024
- Total suicides: 1,70,746; daily wagers about 31%.
- Homemakers: 22,113; unemployed: 14,778; students: 14,488.
- Agriculture sector: 10,546 (4,633 farmers/cultivators and 5,913 agricultural labourers), 6.2% of all suicides; among cultivators 4,481 were men and 152 women.
- Top drug-overdose states: Tamil Nadu 313, Punjab 106, Madhya Pradesh 90, Rajasthan 69, Mizoram 65.
Background
- NCRB works under the Home Ministry as an attached office; it was created in 1986 following recommendations of the Tandon Committee, National Police Commission and an MHA Task Force, and it runs databases like CCTNS.
- Crime in India is its flagship yearly report on cognisable offences; ADSI covers accidental deaths and suicides.
- A cognisable offence lets police arrest without a warrant and investigate without a magistrate’s prior nod.
- IPC (1860) was replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, in force from 1 July 2024.
- UAPA is a 1967 anti-terror law; the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act dates from 1984.
Exam angle
- Nodal ministry for NCRB: Home Affairs; set up 1986.
- Largest cybercrime category: fraud (72.6%).
- State with most drug-overdose deaths in 2024: Tamil Nadu (313).
- Related terms: cognisable offence, BNS, UAPA, CCTNS.