When crime numbers hide more than they reveal

Going by the latest report of the National Crime Records Bureau ( NCRB ), Delhi is the country’s crime capital. Per lakh population, 1508.9 cases of IPC were recorded in 2023. Kerala is second on this list with 721.7 IPC cases per lakh population. Among major states and UTs, Jharkhand had the fewest reported cases at 126.6 per lakh population.

That would make Delhi almost 12 times more unsafe than Jharkhand, and Kerala about six times so. But — and this is where the story takes an unexpected twist — the chances of getting murdered in Jharkhand is almost one and a half times more than in Delhi, and nearly three times higher than in Kerala.



So, are we to believe that Jharkhand has a fantastic record in controlling all other crimes except the most heinous one — murder? On the contrary, this is likely a case of gross under-reporting. Delhi and Kerala have much better policing, and a much more rigorous reporting of crime.

Delhi is ranked first in overall crime, but is eighth when it comes to murders. Kerala is ranked second in overall crime and 22nd in murder. Jharkhand, on the other hand, is ranked 22nd in overall crime and ranks first in murder. Similarly, Punjab and Assam are ranked 19th and 20th in overall crime and 7th and 4th in murder.

Haryana, Telangana, Odisha and Tamil Nadu have the minimum gap in their overall crime rate and the rate of murder and culpable homicide, probably indicating a better capture of both data sets.