Over 5 Lakh Govt Officials To Be Trained As New Criminal Laws Come Into Effect From July 1

The enforcement of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) on July 1 marks a major shift in India's criminal justice system.

These new laws will replace the colonial-era Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), and the Indian Evidence Act.

Photo Credit: PTI

In preparation, over 565,000 officials from police, prison, forensic, judicial, and prosecution departments nationwide have been trained in the new criminal laws. Additionally, nearly 4 million grassroots functionaries have participated in webinars organised by various ministries to ensure public awareness of the changes and their implications.

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) is actively assisting states and Union territories (UTs) to facilitate a smooth transition. The NCRB has established 36 support teams and call centers to provide continuous review and guidance to states and UTs.

"The ministry of home affairs (MHA) has commenced various initiatives immediately after the new laws were notified, to ensure the effective implementation and generating awareness amongst all stakeholders including police, prison, prosecutors, judicial, forensic personnel as well as public. As the new criminal laws emphasise the use of technology in investigation, trial and court proceedings, NCRB has made 23 functional modifications in the existing Crime and Criminal Tracking Networks and Systems (CCTNS) application. It is also providing technical assistance to the states/UTs for seamless transition to the new system," said an officer, on condition of anonymity.

"The NCRB has also formed 36 support teams and call center for constant review and handholding of the States/UTs for implementation of the new criminal laws. National Informatics Centre (NIC) has developed applications - eSakshya, NyayShruti and eSummon for facilitating videography and photography of crime scenes, judicial hearings and delivery court summons electronically," he added.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has held regular meetings with state and UT representatives regarding the new laws. "The states and UTs are fully geared up in terms of technology, capacity building and awareness generation to implement the new criminal Laws from July 1," said the officer. Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) has developed training modules and shared with all the stakeholders. It has also conducted 250 training courses/webinars/seminars in which 40,317 officers/personnel have been trained."

To further public awareness, the ministries of Women and Child Development, Rural Development, and Panchayati Raj have conducted dissemination efforts through webinars involving grassroots functionaries.

To inform students, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has distributed informative flyers to 1,200 universities and 40,000 colleges, while the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has reached out to approximately 9,000 institutions.

Public broadcasters Doordarshan and Akashvani have also aired special programs to highlight key provisions and benefits of the new laws, reported Hindustan Times.

These reforms, introduced in Parliament on August 11 last year, were subsequently reviewed by a parliamentary standing committee. After incorporating some of the committee's suggestions, a revised set of bills was tabled on December 12, 2023, leading to heated debates in both houses.