Telangana's crime rate grew by 8.97% in 2023: DGP Ravi Gupta

HYDERABAD: Telangana's crime rate surged by 8.97 percent in 2023, primarily due to a 17.59 percent rise in cybercrimes, according to Telangana annual police report.

The number of cybercrimes increased to 16,339 in 2023, up from 13,895 the previous year, said Telangana DGP Ravi Gupta, who released the State police's annual report on Friday.

The overall conviction rate increased to 41 percent, while life sentences rose to 39 percent in the year 2023. The courts imposed life sentences in 232 cases in 2023, compared to 168 imprisonments in 2022.

The annual report also indicates that the police invoked the Preventive Detention (PD) Act against 175 repeat offenders in 2023.

Road accidents in Telangana decreased by 1 percent, while grievous accidents decreased by 60 percent in the state in the year 2023.

The state-wide response time of patrol cars was 7 minutes, and 68,923 complaints were handled by Hawk eye. As many as 11,10,944 CCTV cameras were installed in the year 2023.

The Telangana State Anti-Narcotics Bureau (TSNAB) registered 59 cases, arrested 182 people, and recovered contraband worth Rs.7.99 crores. TSNAB apprehended 12 foreigners involved in nine Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) crimes and held four foreigners.

SHE teams received 10,766 complaints in 2023, and 84 rape accused were sentenced to lifetime imprisonment. Telangana Cyber Security Bureau received 85,030 complaints and 12,317 FIRs were filed in 2023.

Telangana police will be tough against drug peddlers

DGP Ravi Gupta highlighted the police facing two significant challenges: the growing drug menace and the rise of cybercrimes. Telangana police will be highly aggressive towards individuals involved in drug dealing, he added.

DGP Ravi Gupta said, "I am happy to inform you that 2023 has been an incident free year compared to the previous year. We are working with all stakeholders for expediting the journey of the citizens through the criminal justice system. A zero tolerance policy shall be followed as far as drugs are concerned. Anyone engaged in drugs dealing whether selling, purchasing, facilitating, possessing drugs shall be dealt stringently as per applicable laws of the land.

He added, "Anyone allowing their premises where drugs can be used or available shall also be severely dealt with. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that our present and future generations remain protected from these substances and patrol and prevention of crime shall be our focus points."

While urging parents and educational institutions to be vigilant, DGP said "I also urge parents to keep a close eye on their children's activities and ensure they do not fall into this trap. I also appeal to educational institutions to remain watchful about drug sales and purchases in and around their campuses."

Telangana State Police has established an exclusive cyber security bureau, making it the country's sole agency of its kind for combating cybercrime. Telangana is the first state to have a dedicated call centre for 1930, the national helpline for cybercrimes, and also the Telangana Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (T4C), he added.

Telangana police received nearly 90,000 complaints since the bureau's establishment, registered 14,000 FIRs, froze 133 crores of accused assets, and blocked 30,000 offenders' sims.

DGP Ravi Gupta has urged the public to remain vigilant against the rise in cyber crimes.