Gujarat recorded crime rates significantly below the national average across several major categories in 2024, including offences against women, violent crimes, and property-related offences, according to the Crime in India – 2024 report released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). The state's overall crime rate stood at 227.7, against the national average of 252.3, placing it 12th among 36 states and union territories.

Crimes Against Women and Children

Gujarat ranked among the states with the lowest recorded crime rates against women. The state reported a rate of 22.0 per lakh population, sharply lower than the national average of 64.6, placing it 33rd among all states and union territories — meaning fewer states recorded lower rates.

In crimes against children, Gujarat reported a rate of 25.8 against the national average of 42.3, ranking 29th nationally. Both figures indicate the state is performing considerably better than most of the country in these categories.

Violent and Serious Offences

The NCRB data showed Gujarat's violent crime rate at 16.5, well below the national average of 52.9, placing the state 31st in a category that covers murder, attempt to murder, rape, kidnapping, robbery, and dacoity. In crimes affecting the human body, the state recorded a rate of 24.7 against the national average of 62.1, also ranking 31st.

For individual serious offences, Gujarat's murder rate stood at 1.3 per lakh against the national average of 1.9, ranking 29th. The rape crime rate was recorded at 1.9, compared with the all-India average of 4.3. For kidnapping and abduction, Gujarat reported a rate of 1.7, significantly below the national figure of 6.8, placing it 26th.

Property Crimes

Gujarat's property crime rate — covering theft, burglary, robbery, and dacoity — stood at 30.4, against a national average of 57.9, placing the state 23rd. In burglary cases specifically, the state recorded a rate of 4.1 against the national average of 7.7, ranking 27th.

The Prohibition Factor

State authorities noted that Gujarat's overall crime count is elevated by a large volume of prohibition-related cases registered under Special and Local Laws, owing to the state's strict enforcement of its liquor ban. Police register these cases suo motu against offences linked to the manufacture, sale, transport, and consumption of liquor, and they are counted in NCRB data alongside conventional offences.

Officials said that when prohibition cases are set aside, conventional crime rates under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) remain lower than the national average across several key categories. This context is important for interpreting the state's overall crime rate of 227.7, which, while below the national figure, includes lakhs of prohibition cases registered annually.

The NCRB data provides a statistical baseline, though independent criminologists note that crime rates also reflect reporting practices and policing intensity, not only the incidence of offences. How the figures evolve in the next annual report will indicate whether the trends hold.