Crime in India 2024: NCRB Report

NCRB Crime in India Report 2024: Rise of Cybercrime Amid Decline in Conventional Crimes. Read here to learn more.

Recently, the National Crime Records Bureau released the Crime in India 2024 report along with the Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India (ADSI) 2024 report.

While the overall cognisable crimes declined by 6%, the report highlighted a sharp 17% rise in cybercrime, signalling a structural shift from traditional street crime to digital and borderless offences.

This trend reflects India’s rapid digitisation, growing online dependence, and vulnerabilities in cyber governance.

Why is the NCRB Report Important?

The NCRB report is considered the most authoritative annual statistical document on crime trends in India. It helps:

• Policymakers design criminal justice reforms
• States compare law-and-order performance
• Researchers analyse social change
• Courts assess governance failures
• Security agencies identify emerging threats

It is also an indicator of changing socio-economic realities.

Crime in India 2024: NCRB Report

1. Decline in Overall Cognisable Crimes

• India recorded 85 lakh cognisable crimes in 2024 compared to 62.41 lakh in 2023.
• However, this decline must be interpreted cautiously because it partly resulted from the implementation of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Reason:

• Under the new law, simple hurt became a non-cognisable offence, causing a sharp fall in registered “hurt” cases.
• Thus, the reduction may be statistical rather than substantive.

2. Traditional Crimes Showing Decline

Murder

• Declined marginally by 2.4%
• Disputes remained the major cause

Kidnapping & Abduction

• Fell by 15.4%

Property Crimes

• Theft declined by 9.8%
• Robbery declined by 13%

This suggests the need for improved surveillance, expansion of CCTV, digital policing, and reforms in urban policing.

3. Crimes Against Vulnerable Sections Rising

Children

Crimes against children rose by 5.9%

Major offences:

• Kidnapping
• POCSO-related offences
• Missing children cases

This reveals continued risks of trafficking and child abuse.

Women

Although total crimes against women declined slightly, major offences continue:

• Cruelty by husband/relatives
• Assault
• Stalking
• Cyber harassment

Senior Citizens

Crimes against senior citizens increased by 16.9%

Main offences:

• Theft
• Cheating
• Fraud
• Financial scams

This reflects the growing vulnerability of ageing populations.

Cybercrime: India’s Biggest Internal Security Challenge

• The most alarming finding was the 17% increase in cybercrime, which resulted in over 1 lakh reported cases.
• Cybercrime is now one of the fastest-growing threats to national security, the economy, and citizen safety.

Why is Cybercrime Rising?

1. Rapid Digitisation Without Equal Security

India has built a world-class digital public infrastructure:

• UPI
• Aadhaar
• Digital banking
• E-commerce

But cyber awareness and protection mechanisms have lagged.

2. AI-enabled Fraud

Criminals now use:

• Voice cloning
• Deepfake videos
• Fake KYC calls
• AI phishing emails
• Impersonation scams

This makes fraud harder to detect.

3. Digital Arrest Scam

A major new trend in 2024 was the “Digital Arrest” scam.

Fraudsters pose as:

• Central Bureau of Investigation
• Customs officials
• Police officers

They threaten arrest through video calls and force victims to transfer money.

4. Organised Fraud Syndicates

Cybercrime hubs such as:

• Jamtara
• Mewat

have evolved into organised scam ecosystems using:

• Fake SIM cards
• Mule bank accounts
• VoIP networks

5. Low Digital Literacy

• Many first-time users, especially elderly and rural populations, cannot identify scams.

Wider Security Implications

Cybercrime is no longer just financial fraud.

It can target:

• Power grids
• Hospitals
• Government databases
• Election systems
• Defence networks

This makes cybercrime a component of hybrid warfare.

Suicide and Drug Overdose Trends

The ADSI 2024 report recorded:

• 1,70,746 suicides
• 50% rise in drug overdose deaths

This reflects:

• Mental health stress
• Substance abuse
• Urban loneliness
• Youth unemployment
• Social breakdown

Structural Issues in Crime Data

Under-reporting

Many crimes remain unreported due to:

• Social stigma
• Police reluctance
• Lack of awareness
• Rural barriers

Variations Across States

Higher crime numbers may reflect:

• Better reporting systems
• Greater urbanisation
• Stronger FIR registration

Thus, crime data must be interpreted carefully.

Way forward

1. Dedicated Cyber Police Cadre: Create specialised cyber units in every district with:

• Ethical hackers
• Digital forensics experts
• Financial analysts

2. Strengthen the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre: Give statutory powers for interstate cyber coordination.
3. Public Awareness Campaigns: Mass awareness on:

• OTP fraud
• QR scams
• Fake police calls
• Deepfake scams

4. Protect Senior Citizens: Launch cyber safety helplines and financial counselling.
5. Upgrade Legal Framework: Use a legal framework to improve prosecutions:

• Digital Personal Data Protection Act
• Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam

6. Mental Health Support: Expand counselling, addiction treatment, and community support systems.

Role of NCRB in Internal Security

The National Crime Records Bureau also manages:

• CCTNS
• NAFIS fingerprint database
• Prison statistics
• National sexual offender database

Thus, it is central to modern policing.

Conclusion

The NCRB 2024 report shows that India’s law-and-order challenge is shifting from physical streets to digital networks. While murders, thefts and robberies may decline, fraud, identity theft, cyber extortion and psychological crimes are rising rapidly.

India now needs a transition from conventional policing to intelligent cyber governance, combining technology, legal reform, citizen awareness and human sensitivity. In the digital era, national security depends as much on firewalls as on police stations.