AHMEDABAD: The Union government, in a Lok Sabha reply on Tuesday, conceded that the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has not allocated a single rupee under the Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCPWC) scheme to Gujarat in the past four years.
The scheme, designed to bolster states and UTs with cyber forensic labs, junior cyber consultants, and specialized training for law enforcement, prosecutors, and judicial officers, has effectively stalled due to this financial freeze.
On Tuesday, Lok Sabha MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi pressed the Home Ministry for a state-wise, year-wise breakdown of funds allocated, disbursed, and utilized under the Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCPWC) scheme. In response, the Union Home Ministry provided nationwide data, revealing a glaring funding drought for Gujarat.
In 2017-18, the scheme's launch year, the Centre allocated Rs 2.72 crore to Gujarat. But the following year, 2018-19, saw a complete halt—not a single rupee was granted. A token sum of Rs 0.73 lakh trickled in for 2019-20, only for the funding to dry up entirely from 2020-21 to 2023-24.
Even as Gujarat grapples with a spiraling cybercrime crisis, the state has gone four straight years without a single rupee under the Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCPWC) Scheme.
According to July 2024 data, Gujarat now holds the dubious distinction of being the third-worst state for cyber fraud.
The numbers are staggering—121,701 cases, translating to 13 frauds every hour, over 333 daily. The financial blow? A jaw-dropping Rs 650 crore lost to cybercriminals in just one year. Yet, despite this digital crime surge, funding for prevention remains at absolute zero.
According to old data from the Ministry of Home Affairs paints a grim picture—Gujarat recorded 121,701 cyber fraud complaints in 2023, with 49,220 cases was unresolved. The financial hit is staggering—Rs 650.53 crore swindled, while Rs 156.9 crore remains in limbo.
The crisis isn’t confined to Gujarat alone. Cyber fraud is exploding nationwide, with India logging 1,128,265 complaints last year. Uttar Pradesh tops the list with 197,547 cases, followed by Maharashtra (125,153), while Gujarat stands third in the cybercrime race.
Meanwhile, the Gujarat government has announced the launch of a Cyber Centre of Excellence for Cyber Crime (CCECC) and an Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF). Finance Minister Kanu Desai, while presenting the 2025-26 state budget, earmarked Rs 352 crore for these high-stakes initiatives, signaling a strong push for digital security and drug enforcement.