Patna: Police stations across Bihar will now provide copies of first information reports (FIRs) in 23 languages, including Maithili, Santhali and Nepali, under a new directive from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
Until now, FIRs were generally available only in Hindi, English, and a few regional languages. The change, announced by NCRB Director Alok Ranjan, instructs police in all states to offer complainants the option to receive an FIR in their preferred language.
The list of supported languages includes Hindi, English, Maithili, Santhali, Nepali, Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. District Superintendents of Police, as well as Range IGs and DIGs, have been directed to ensure compliance.
The initiative leverages the Computerized Crime and Law Enforcement Network System (CCTNS) and NCRB’s AI-powered language translator, “Bhashini,” developed under the Crime Multi-Agency Centre (CRY-MAC). Through this system, FIRs can be instantly translated and printed in the complainant’s chosen language, streamlining the process and removing previous delays caused by manual translation.
“The facility aims to simplify communication between police and the public, ensuring that language is no longer a barrier to justice,” an NCRB spokesperson said.
The move is expected to enhance transparency, improve citizen satisfaction, and strengthen trust in the police. Officials describe it as a significant step towards modernising and linguistically reforming policing across India.
