The Indian Forensic Setup: CFSL, SFSL, DFSS, NICFS

The Directorate of Forensic Science Services was established in 2002, consolidating what had previously been a looser arrangement of centrally funded forensic bodies under the Ministry of Home Affairs. The Director of Forensic Science Services heads the directorate, which has functional oversight over the Central Forensic Science Laboratories, the National Institute of Criminology and Forensic Science, the Government Examiner of Questioned Documents, and the Central Fingerprint Bureau, though the CFPB operates with considerable operational independence under the National Crime Records Bureau.

The DFSS's formal role includes policy development, standardisation of methods across central labs, coordination with state FSL directorates, and administration of quality assurance programmes. In practice, a significant part of its work involves processing referrals from central investigation agencies (CBI, NIA, ED) to the appropriate CFSL, managing the NICFS training calendar, and liaising with the NCRB on crime data that has forensic implications.

India currently operates Central Forensic Science Laboratories at New Delhi, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Pune, Guwahati, and Bhopal. Each CFSL carries a range of standard forensic science divisions: biology and serology, chemistry (drugs and toxicology), ballistics, documents, electronics and cybercrime, physics, and fingerprints. Not every CFSL has equal depth in every division; the New Delhi and Hyderabad labs are the most comprehensively staffed.

The CFSLs primarily accept referrals from the CBI, NIA, and other central agencies, from central paramilitary forces, and from cases where the referring court or agency specifically requires a central lab opinion. They can also accept second-opinion referrals when a state case has produced a contested result. Most CFSLs have accreditation by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL), which is the Indian signatory body to the ILAC mutual recognition arrangement for ISO 17025.

Each state and union territory in India funds and operates its own forensic science laboratory, reporting to the state police or home department. These State FSLs form the backbone of the country's forensic capacity: they process the evidence from state and district police, covering murder, sexual assault, drug seizures, accidents, and document fraud, which together account for the overwhelming majority of forensic science demand in India.

Several larger states have extended this structure downward into Regional Forensic Science Laboratories, positioned in major cities or division headquarters to reduce the distance cases have to travel. Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka all operate RFSL networks. For cases below the RFSL's capacity, or in states without an RFSL layer, work goes directly to the State FSL, which can mean considerable transit time and evidence-preservation risk for time-sensitive biological material.

The quality gap between the best and worst state labs is significant. Some state FSLs have modern DNA sequencing equipment, trained staff, and active NABL accreditation programmes. Others work with outdated equipment, high staff vacancies, and backlogs measured in years. A parliamentary standing committee report from 2021 noted that many state FSLs were operating below optimal capacity and that staff shortages were a persistent constraint.

The National Institute of Criminology and Forensic Science, established in 1972 and located in Rohini, New Delhi, is the central institution for forensic science training in India. It runs short-term programmes for serving forensic scientists, courses for police officers and prosecutors on how to work with forensic evidence, and certificate programmes in specific disciplines such as questioned documents, fingerprints, and toxicology. The NICFS also runs a Master of Science programme in forensic science in collaboration with universities.

Beyond training, NICFS publishes Forensic Science Review, operates a library and documentation centre, and conducts applied research relevant to Indian casework contexts. It has historically served as a venue for inter-lab calibration exercises and proficiency testing in disciplines where no other national framework exists. The Institute's capacity is finite and reaches only a fraction of the forensic workforce each year, which is why state-level training academies and university curricula carry the bulk of entry-level training.

The Government Examiner of Questioned Documents operates through two offices, at Shimla and Hyderabad, both under the DFSS. GEQD examines handwriting and signatures, typewriting, printing, ink, and paper analysis, alterations, erasures, and additions to documents, in cases referred from courts, investigation agencies, and state governments. The volume of questioned-document work in India is large: land records, wills, financial instruments, and government certificates generate a substantial fraud caseload.

State FSLs also run document divisions, but GEQD handles the most complex cases, provides a second-opinion service, and is the body whose experts most frequently testify before the Supreme Court and High Courts. The Shimla office serves primarily north and west India; Hyderabad covers the south and east. GEQD opinions are treated as expert opinions under the Indian Evidence Act (now the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023) and must be presented through qualified expert witnesses who can be cross-examined.

India's geography and population distribution create a fundamental reach problem for any fixed-lab model. A crime scene in a remote district in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, or northeastern India may be many hours from the nearest FSL. In those hours, biological evidence degrades, scene contamination accumulates, and the initial investigation proceeds without scientific support. Mobile Forensic Science Laboratories are one answer to this problem.

Mobile FSL units are vehicles, typically vans, fitted with crime scene examination equipment: latent fingerprint development chemicals, alternate light sources, basic serology kits, photography and documentation equipment, and packaging materials for evidence collection. They are staffed by forensic scientists or trained crime scene investigators who can attend scenes, collect and preserve evidence, and prepare exhibits for transport to the fixed lab. The MHA has funded mobile FSL deployment programmes under central scheme assistance to states.

Mobile FSLs do not replace analytical labs. They are first-response tools. Their value is in improving the quality of evidence that reaches the fixed lab, not in generating lab results at the scene. The limitation is that their scope is constrained by what can fit in a van, what can be done without bench equipment, and how long a scientific officer can spend at a single scene before the next call comes in.

The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023, which came into force in July 2024 replacing the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973, includes a significant forensic science provision. Section 176(3) of BNSS requires that for offences punishable by seven or more years of imprisonment, a forensic expert must visit the crime scene, collect forensic evidence, and document their findings. This is a statutory mandate, not a best-practice recommendation.

The intent is clear: India has a long-standing problem with crime scenes being disturbed or inadequately examined before forensic experts arrive, if they arrive at all. The mandate is designed to change this by building forensic scene attendance into the legal process. If a forensic expert does not attend the scene, evidence collection must be videographed.