Bengaluru safer than smaller cities: National Crime Records Bureau

BENGALURU: It's a mixed bag for Bengaluru in the crimes chart. The city figures third in a list of 53 big cities (with a population of 10 lakh or more) in major crimes, but it can draw consolation from the fact that smaller cities have much higher incidence rate.

Delhi and Patna are the top two crime cities, according to the National Crime Records Bureau data for 2015.

NCRB says the incidence per lakh of population is called the rate of crime.

Bengaluru stood third in the number of murders and some categories of crime against women like dowry deaths and assault with intent to out rage modesty. But these crimes - when measured against the per-lakh population - don't make Bengaluru look as bad only because smaller cities fare much worse in all these three categories. Bengaluru reported 188 murder cases in which 201 persons were killed, behind Delhi (464 cases, 490 victims) and Patna (both 232).But when it came to incidence of murders, only 2.2 cases were reported for every lakh of population in Bengaluru, way behind smaller cities Patna (11.3), Meerut (5.8), Jodhpur (5.1) and Delhi (4.1).

However, Bengaluru was second in attempt to murder cases with 481 victims in 464 incidents. Again, Delhi was first with 703 victims in 674 incidents. Mumbai was third with 243 victims in 231 cases.

Women in Bengaluru though were on comparatively safer terrain. The city reported the 12th highest number of rape cases at 112, way behind the top three -Delhi (1893), Mumbai (712) and Jaipur (273). The incidence of rape in Bengaluru (1.3) too was way behind Jodhpur (13.4) and Delhi (1.6).The rapes included custodial and non-custodial rapes.

When it came to non-custodial rapes, Bengaluru was 11th at 112, way behind Del hi (1893) and Mumbai (712). Curiously, the city reported no custodial gang-rapes during 2015, while non-custodial rapes were five, way behind Del hi (80), Faridabad (16) and Mumbai (14).

While 100 women died of dowry harassment in Del hi, Patna (74) and Bengalu ru (54) were second and third. But only 0.6 women in a population of lakh paid the price for dowry harass ment with their lives, against 3.6 in Agra and 2.5 in Patna.

Karnataka's capital was third when it came to cases of assault on women with intent to outrage modesty, reporting 718 cases, way behind Delhi (4563) and Mumbai (2008).But the incidence of this category of crime was only 8.4, far behind cities like Jodhpur (38.7), Aurangabad (32.2) and Delhi (28).

Cognizable crimes

Bengaluru reported the thirdhighest number of overarching category of crimes ­ cognizable crimes which police can take cognizance of and investigate on their own ­ at 35,575, behind Delhi (1,73,947) and Mumbai (42940).

The Karnataka capital with a population of 85 lakh, contributed to 5.3% of the total such crimes ­ 6,76,086, after Delhi (25.7%) and Mumbai 6.4%. But the incidence of cognizable crimes per every lakh population in Bengaluru (418.6) paled in comparison to cities like Kollam (1194.3), Jodhpur (1038.8), Thiruvananthapuram (913.8), Jaipur (855.5), Patna (824.2) and Gwalior (774.1).