MHA to train 27,500 police to fight blue whale challenge, other cybercrimes

The Home Ministry will train 27,500 police personnel across the country to tackle cyber crimes against women and children, Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday.

Minister of State for Home Affairs Hansraj Gangaram Ahir also said that the Centre had directed all the state and union territory governments to closely monitor the situation against the backdrop of blue whale challenge game wherein several instances of children committing suicide had come to fore.

He said in a written reply that police and public order are State subjects and prevention, detection, investigation of crime, including capacity building of police personnel are primarily the responsibility of states.

"Various steps are taken by MHA as well as States to modernise the preventive set up and equip police personnel with knowledge and skills for prevention and control of crime," he said.

The minister said training to law enforcement personnel is regularly imparted through various national and state police academies and institutes.

"Ministry of Home Affairs is implementing Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children scheme in the period 2017-2020 which aims to train 27,500 police personnel across the country in the field of cyber domain," he said.

In response to a separate question, he said the scheme is run from NIRBHAYA funds during the period 2017-2020, which inter alia, aims at setting up an online cyber-crime reporting platform to allow public to report complaints of cyber crime, including child pornography and facilitate removal of child pornographic content in coordination with concerned ministries.

He said the ministry has also issued an advisory on steps to check phone frauds to all state governments and UT administrations on February 12.

"The Ministry has recently set up a Cyber and Information Security Division to look into matters relating to cyber-crime and information security etc," he added.