FIR
Definition
First Information Report under Section 173 BNSS 2023 (formerly Section 154 CrPC). Trigger document that feeds into CCTNS and downstream forensic referral.
- Statute
- Section 173 BNSS 2023, formerly Section 154 CrPC
- Full form
- First Information Report
- Feeds into
- CCTNS
- Downstream effect
- Triggers forensic referral
Common questions
What changed for the FIR provision under BNSS 2023 compared to the old CrPC?+
The requirement to record an FIR moved from Section 154 CrPC to Section 173 of the BNSS 2023 as part of India's 2023 criminal law recodification, though its core function as the trigger document for an investigation remains the same.
Why does the FIR matter to a forensic scientist rather than only to police procedure?+
It is the formal starting point that enters the case into CCTNS and sets in motion the referral of evidence to an FSL, so the facts and timeline stated in the FIR often shape what forensic examinations get requested.
Related terms
- BPR&D
- Bureau of Police Research and Development. MHA body for police modernisation, training standards, and forensic-equipment specifications.
- CCTNS
- Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems. Pan-India platform for FIR registration and inter-state crime data, rollout from 2009 under NCRB.
- CFSL
- Central Forensic Science Laboratory: a central government lab operating under DFSS. India has CFSLs at New Delhi, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Pune, Guwahati,...
- DFSS
- Directorate of Forensic Science Services, India; issues the Forensic Laboratory Manual that governs glass and soil examination procedures, including the bromoform-based density...
- GEQD
- Government Examiner of Questioned Documents: the central body for document examination with offices at Shimla, Hyderabad, and Kolkata, examining handwriting, ink, paper,...
- MHA
- Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Parent ministry for DFSS, CFSLs (excluding CBI-administered CFSL Delhi), NCRB, BPR&D and NFSU.
- NCRB
- National Crime Records Bureau. MHA body established 1986; runs CCTNS, publishes the Crime in India report, and operates CFPB and NAFIS.
- NFSU
- National Forensic Sciences University, Gandhinagar. Established 2020 by Act of Parliament, which declared it an Institution of National Importance. India's national university...
- NICFS
- National Institute of Criminology and Forensic Science: India's central forensic training institute in New Delhi, running courses for forensic scientists, police, and...
- RFSL
- Regional Forensic Science Laboratory. Sub-state, district or zonal level. Absorbs the SFSL's overflow and handles district-court matters.
- SFSL
- State Forensic Science Laboratory: a state-government lab that processes the bulk of routine casework from state and district police. Quality and capacity...