Multimedia Forensics: Photogrammetry and BSA Section 39 Admissibility

UGC-NET Forensic Science Unit VI hard-band drill on multimedia forensics, covering close-range photogrammetry, terrestrial laser scanning, 360-degree scene capture, digital image authentication, and the Indian legal framework for expert opinion and electronic records under the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023. Questions are calibrated to the one-parameter distractor standard: distractors differ from the correct answer on a single EXIF tag, one BSA section number, one scanner accuracy figure, or one photogrammetric parameter.

This mock is aimed at MSc Forensic Science students preparing for UGC-NET Paper II, NFSU MSc entrance examinations, and FACT digital-forensics papers. The legal segment maps to Anvar P.V. v. P.K. Basheer (2014) 2 SCC 1 and Arjun Panditrao Khotkar v. Kailash Kushanrao Gorantyal (2020) 7 SCC 1 on electronic-record certification under Section 65B IEA 1872, now carried forward as Section 63 BSA 2023. Expert opinion admissibility under Section 45 IEA 1872, now Section 39 BSA 2023, is examined through accident-reconstruction and scene-measurement scenarios.

Topics covered:

• Parallax, focal-length calibration, and image-pair triangulation in close-range photogrammetry
• Ground control points and their role in georeferencing photogrammetric models
• Stereoscopic versus single-image photogrammetry in accident and crime-scene reconstruction
• FARO Focus laser scanner, NavVis M6, and Matterport Pro2: resolution and accuracy specifications
• Terrestrial LiDAR: time-of-flight principle, millimetre accuracy, and hit-and-run reconstruction
• EXIF metadata fields (DateTime, GPS tags, FocalLength) and their forensic significance
• Error level analysis and copy-move detection for digital image authentication
• Section 39 BSA 2023 (formerly Section 45 IEA 1872) on admissibility of expert opinion
• Section 63 BSA 2023 (formerly Section 65B IEA 1872) on the electronic-records certificate
• Chain of custody and peer review requirements for photographic and scan evidence

Allow 30 minutes.