Serious offences dip in 2020, COVID violations pushes up crime rate
The Hindu
Crimes related to disobeying orders given by public servants increased 21 times between 2019 and 2020
Recorded crimes in India increased by 28% in 2020 compared to 2019, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). This was primarily due to cases registered for flouting COVID-19-related lockdown norms. A sharp increase was recorded in cases reported under the “disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant, Section 188 of the IPC”, which lays down the penalties for violating the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, under which the lockdown-related norms were laid. However, violent and severe crimes such as rape, kidnapping and crimes against children declined. The police’s chargesheeting rate and courts’ conviction rate of cases also improved, possibly due to a drop in new cases.
The number of registered cognisable crimes increased from 51.6 lakh in 2019 to 66 lakh in 2020, a 28% increase. The crime rate (crimes per 1 lakh people) also rose from 385.5 in 2019 to 487.8 in 2020. The chart shows the % increase in total crimes (left-axis) and the crime rate (right-axis).