Dikhyaa Mohanty 
In 2023, Odisha registered 1,99,954 incidences of cognisable crime, according to a Home Department white paper presented to the state Assembly on Friday. In 2023, there was an approximate 12% increase in the number of cases of cognisable crimes registered in the state. Based on accessible statistics, Odisha recorded 1,78,190 crimes that were considered crimes. Nonetheless, the state saw a minor decrease in the number of murder cases in 2023—1,362 cases were reported compared to 1,379 cases in 2022.
According to the Home Department’s white paper, Odisha registered 2,348 cases of cybercrime in 2023, up from 1,983 similar cases in 2022. These crimes included 362 financial scams. In 2023, the cyber complex in Bhubaneswar’s Children & Women Online Abuse Monitoring Unit received 571 complaints about the uploading of child pornography or sexually explicit content, including as rape or gang-rape. The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has filed 82,132 complaints against the state about the uploading of files about child sexual abuse from IP addresses in Odisha.
Similarly, in 2023, victims of different financial crimes called the cybercrime helpline number 16,602 times, reporting them to the Odisha Police. In addition, the state saw 1,655 riot crimes, 2,961 robbery cases, 6,071 burglary cases, 16,851 theft cases, 6,196 deception cases, and 370 dacoity instances in 2023.
The white paper states that 2,826 incidences of sexual assault were reported to various police stations throughout the state in the previous year. Additionally, according to the white paper, 1,49,670 miscellaneous cases and 11,992 accident cases were reported throughout the state in 2023. Despite the fact that 13 Maoist cadres were detained and three Maoist cadres were killed in 2023, the state administration stated in the white report that Maoist activity in Odisha were under control.
