The Central government has announced plans to establish a cyber forensic division in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, as part of an ongoing effort to expand digital forensic capabilities across the country, the Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
In a written reply to a question in Parliament, Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar said cyber forensic divisions are currently being set up in Punjab, Nagaland, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. He added that 27 States and Union Territories already have cyber forensic facilities in place.
According to the minister, Sikkim is presently the only state without access to such a facility. The remaining Union Territories, Chandigarh, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Lakshadweep, and Ladakh, are utilising forensic science services available in neighbouring States or Union Territories, in addition to support from Central Forensic Science Laboratories.
The proposed cyber forensic division for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is expected to strengthen the region’s capacity to investigate cybercrime and digital evidence-related cases locally, reducing reliance on mainland forensic infrastructure.
Providing details on national-level infrastructure, the minister informed the House that the Government of India has established a National Cyber Forensic Laboratory (Evidentiary) at the Central Forensic Science Laboratory in Hyderabad. The facility was set up with a total financial outlay of Rs 37.34 crore.
In addition, funding amounting to Rs 126.84 crore has been approved under the umbrella scheme “Safety of Women” for the establishment of six National Cyber Forensic Laboratories (Evidentiary) at Central Forensic Science Laboratories located in Delhi, Chandigarh, Kolkata in West Bengal, Kamrup in Assam, Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, and Pune in Maharashtra.
Of the approved amount, Rs 22.51 crore has been utilised so far, the minister said.
On the issue of case pendency, Bandi Sanjay Kumar stated that data on pending cyber forensic cases across states is not maintained at the central level. However, he shared details of pendency at the National Cyber Forensic Laboratory in Hyderabad, where 181 cases are currently pending examination.
The Hyderabad facility is staffed by four in-house experts along with five contractual personnel, he informed the House.
Addressing concerns related to capacity building, the minister said reskilling and upskilling of cyber professionals is an ongoing process and forms part of their functional responsibilities. He noted that training is primarily carried out through on-the-job learning.
He further said the National Forensic Sciences University has been conducting specialised training programmes in cyber forensics. Over the past five years, the university has organised 66 training programmes, with participation from 1,852 officers drawn from various government departments.
The establishment of a cyber forensic division in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands comes amid rising dependence on digital evidence in criminal investigations and is expected to enhance the islands’ institutional preparedness to handle cyber-related offences.
