The National Crime Records Bureau’s (NCRB) “Crime in India 2023” report has revealed stark regional disparities in crime statistics, with Communist-ruled Kerala recording the highest crime rate in the nation while Uttar Pradesh maintained a crime rate significantly lower than the national average.
Kerala registered an alarming 1,631.2 crimes per lakh population, the highest among all states and nearly five times the national average of 335.3. This places the southern state at the top of India’s crime chart, followed closely by Delhi among union territories with 1,602 cases per lakh population.
In contrast, Uttar Pradesh, despite reporting the highest absolute number of crimes against women at 66,381 cases, demonstrated a significantly lower crime rate of 58.6 cases per one lakh female population compared to the national average of 66.2. When considering overall crime metrics, Uttar Pradesh’s crime rate stood at 335.3 per lakh population, well below the national average of 448.3.
The data shows Uttar Pradesh ranked 13th among 28 states when measured by crime rate against women and 17th when compared to all 36 states and union territories combined. Several states reported substantially higher crime rates than Uttar Pradesh, including Telangana (124.9), Rajasthan (114.8), and Haryana (110.3).
Uttar Pradesh’s Director General of Police Rajeev Krishna attributed the state’s relatively better performance to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s zero-tolerance approach to crime. “The high case numbers reflect the size of the state, but the lower crime rate suggests that increased police visibility, targeted safety schemes, and dedicated helplines are mitigating the per-capita risk,” Krishna stated.
The state government credits initiatives like Mission Shakti, which focuses on women’s empowerment and safety through helplines, fast-track complaint redressal, and awareness drives, for the improved metrics. Authorities argue that the relatively lower crime rate also indicates growing confidence among women to report crimes that previously went unregistered.
The NCRB data breakdown shows that most crimes against women in Uttar Pradesh were committed by known individuals, with domestic violence comprising 34% of cases. Other significant categories included assault on women with intent to outrage modesty (20%), rape cases (8%), and cybercrimes against women (9%).
Beyond the Uttar Pradesh-Kerala comparison, the report highlighted concerning trends elsewhere. Delhi recorded a sharp decline in conviction rates, dropping from 87.8% in 2022 to 78.1% in 2023. Bengaluru reported the lowest chargesheeting rate for kidnapping cases among metropolitan cities at just 3.8%, with 1,139 of the 1,203 kidnapping victims being children.
Nationally, the report showed significant improvements in security parameters, with cases of extremist violence dropping sharply from 446 in 2022 to 163 in 2023. Jihadi terrorism cases fell by 87%, while Left-wing extremism declined by over 44% and North-East insurgency by 61%.
The contrasting pictures presented by Kerala’s high crime rate and Uttar Pradesh’s below-average statistics underscore how population scale and regional governance approaches influence crime patterns across India’s diverse states.
(With inputs from VSK Telangana)
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