Haryana: Digital database of criminals involved in heinous offences developed

Chandigarh, Jun 3 (PTI) The specially constituted Rohtak-Jhajjar-Sonipat-Faridabad (RJSF) Unit has developed a comprehensive digital database of criminals involved in heinous offences over the past decade and is maintaining continuous surveillance on their activities, officials said on Wednesday.

The unit has been formed to address the crime-sensitive districts of Rohtak, Jhajjar, Sonipat, and Faridabad.

The primary objectives of this initiative are to eradicate organised crime at its roots, monitor criminal movements in real time, and prevent potential offences before they occur, a Haryana police statement said on Wednesday.

The initiative was deliberated upon during a high-level review meeting chaired recently by Haryana Director General of Police

Ajay Singhal at Police headquarters at Sector-6, Panchkula.

The meeting was attended by senior officers from state police headquarters, along with additional directors general of police, inspectors general of police, police commissioners, superintendents of police, and other senior officials.

During the meeting, Inspector General of Police (Rohtak Range) Simardeep Singh delivered a detailed presentation on the RJSF Unit’s operational methodology and achievements.

He explained that on the directions of DGP Singhal, the unit was first launched as a pilot project in Rohtak district.

Encouraged by the remarkable results achieved in the initial phase, the model was subsequently extended to Jhajjar, Sonipat, and Faridabad. The unit now functions as a dedicated intelligence-based crime control mechanism across all four districts, with plans to roll it out to other districts in due course.

The RJSF Unit has built a detailed database covering 10,892 criminals involved in murder, attempted murder, and other grave offences over the past ten years.

Each entry includes the offender’s criminal history, known activities, associates, social background, current status, and several other pertinent details. Crucially, the unit has not merely catalogued these individuals, it has also categorised them by risk level, enabling police to assess which offenders are likely to reoffend and which individuals are at greater risk of being drawn into organised criminal networks.

One of the most distinctive features of the RJSF Unit is that its surveillance extends beyond active criminals to individuals whom gangster networks may attempt to recruit.

According to senior police officials, criminal gangs routinely target petty offenders, accused persons out on bail, and crime-prone youth for induction into their networks.

The unit identifies vulnerable individuals and analyses their behavioural patterns to flag them before they become further entrenched in criminal activity. The underlying philosophy of this strategy is proactive prevention, eliminating the possibility of crime before it occurs, rather than responding after the fact, they said.

The RJSF Unit employs a convergent approach combining modern technology, human intelligence sources, and field-level surveillance to monitor offenders.

Dedicated teams have been deployed in each area to gather information on criminals’ current addresses, social activities, associations, and criminal network linkages, according to the statement.

Behavioural changes are tracked and analysed through technical means, and every available data point relating to an offender is subjected to meticulous scrutiny. This integrated approach has already yielded significant breakthroughs in several important cases.

DGP Singhal underscored that criminals do not confine their activities to a single district. Accordingly, the intelligence gathered and actions taken by the RJSF Unit will be shared with other districts across the state.

He stated that advance knowledge of a criminal’s movements enables the police to take pre-emptive action in time, thereby significantly strengthening crime prevention, surveillance, and inter-district coordination.

The meeting also reviewed the achievements of the Haryana Special Task Force (STF).

STF Superintendent of Police Waseem Akram informed the meeting that under the ongoing special operation against gangster networks, 323 gang members and criminals were arrested in 2024, 470 in 2025, and 148 between January and May 28, 2026 ‘” bringing the total to 941 arrests over three years, marking a landmark achievement in the fight against organised crime.

Haryana STF has also registered notable successes at the international level. Since its formation, 22 wanted gangsters have been deported or extradited from foreign countries and brought back to India.

Nine gangsters have been repatriated in 2026 alone.

Addressing the meeting, DGP Singhal stated that in view of the evolving nature of crime and the expanding activities of organised criminal syndicates, the police must move decisively beyond conventional policing and embrace an intelligence-led, data-driven approach.

He affirmed that building comprehensive criminal databases and maintaining uninterrupted surveillance are critical steps in effective crime control. PTI SUN NB NB