Miscellaneous Schemes under Ministry of Home Affairs

Witness Protection Scheme

• Aim: To promote law enforcement by protecting witnesses, since fear of threats often prevents them from testifying truthfully.
• Protection is provided based on threat perception, divided into three categories:
  • Category A: Serious threat to the life of witness or their family members.
  • Category B: Threat to safety, reputation, or property of the witness/family.
  • Category C: Moderate threat, such as harassment or intimidation.
• Protection measures include:
  • Changing or concealing the identity of witnesses,
  • Relocating them to safe places,
  • Installing security devices at their residence, etc.
• Witness Protection Fund:
  Expenses of this scheme are met through:
  • Budgetary allocation,
  • Amounts imposed by courts/tribunals,
  • Donations from philanthropists/charitable institutions,
  • Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) contributions.

✅ Significance: Builds public confidence in the justice system and ensures witnesses can testify without fear.

Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS)

• Nature: A Mission Mode Project under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP).
• Aim: To create an integrated and IT-enabled system for effective policing and faster crime detection.
• Features:
  • Establishes a nationwide network infrastructure for crime tracking.
  • Provides a state-of-the-art system for investigating crimes and detecting criminals.
  • Implemented in all police stations in India; currently, 99% of police stations are covered, and 100% FIRs are being registered digitally in CCTNS.

✅ Significance: Marks a transition from manual record-keeping to digital policing, improving efficiency, transparency, and coordination.

Border Area Development Programme (BADP)

• Coverage: Habitations located within 0–10 km from the international border in 117 border districts of 16 states and 2 UTs (e.g., Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, J&K, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Ladakh, etc.).
• Aim: To meet the special developmental needs of people living in border areas, ensuring their well-being and preventing feelings of neglect.
• Features:
  • Provides essential infrastructure like roads, health, and education facilities.
  • Complements efforts of central/state/local schemes for border area development.

✅ Significance: Strengthens national security by improving living standards of border populations and integrating them with the national mainstream.

Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCWC)

• Aim: To strengthen mechanisms to deal with cybercrimes (like online harassment, exploitation, or abuse) in a comprehensive and coordinated way.
• Support to States/UTs includes:
  • Financial assistance to set up cyber forensic-cum-training laboratories,
  • Training personnel,
  • Hiring junior cyber consultants.

✅ Significance: Protects vulnerable sections (women and children) in the growing digital ecosystem.

Bharat Ke Veer

• Type: An IT-based platform.
• Objective: Enables willing donors to contribute directly to families of bravehearts (martyrs of Central Armed Police Forces).
• Features:
  • Citizens, including NRIs, can donate directly to the bank account of the martyr’s family or to the Bharat Ke Veer corpus fund.
  • Donation cap: ₹15 lakhs per braveheart.
  • Managed by a committee of eminent persons and senior officials.
  • Donors get tax benefits under Section 80(G) of Income Tax Act, 2018.

✅ Significance: Encourages public participation in honoring and supporting soldiers’ families, thereby strengthening the bond between citizens and security forces.

Modernisation of Police Forces (MPF)

• Type: A Centrally Sponsored Scheme, covering about 15 sub-schemes.
• Tenure: Includes the scheme of Assistance to States and UTs for Narcotics Control, extended from 2021–22 to 2025–26.
• Aim:
  • To equip state police forces with modern weapons, technology, and training.
  • Reduce overdependence on the Army and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) for internal security.
• Salient Features:
  • Raising India Reserve Battalions,
  • Central sector support for narcotics control,
  • National Policy & Action Plan to combat Left Wing Extremism (LWE),
  • Developing forensic infrastructure,
  • Adoption of modern technology in policing.

✅ Significance: Strengthens law-and-order machinery, enabling police to tackle challenges like terrorism, organized crime, cybercrime, and insurgency.

‘e-Sahaj’ Portal

• Purpose: To provide a simple online mechanism for security clearance before granting licenses, permits, permissions, or contracts in sensitive sectors.
• Beneficiaries: Companies, bidders, or individuals seeking approvals in sectors that involve potential security risks.
• How it works:
  • Applicants can apply online for security clearance.
  • The portal evaluates possible security threats (economic threats, insider threats, etc.).
  • Only after a positive risk assessment, the investment or project proposal is cleared.

✅ Significance: Strengthens national security framework by ensuring that sensitive sectors remain free from security risks before business activities are allowed.

Scheme for Expansion and Modernization of Fire Services in the States

• Background: Based on the recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission.
• Funding Mechanism:
  • 12.5% of each of NDRF and SDRF funds are allocated for preparedness and capacity building.
  • Out of the total NDRF corpus, ₹5,000 crore earmarked for expanding and modernizing fire services.
  • Additionally, ₹500 crore kept aside as incentive for states undertaking legal and infrastructure reforms.
• Objective: To expand and modernize fire services across states.
• Tenure: Launched in 2023, operational till 2025-26.

✅ Significance: Enhances states’ preparedness for fire-related disasters, improves infrastructure, and motivates states to implement reforms.

Village Defence Guards (VDGs) Scheme 2022

• Purpose: To organize small groups of volunteer armed civilians in border villages to instill self-protection and check trans-border movement.
• Coverage: Villages along the borders and inner areas of the Jammu division.
• Structure:
  • Size: Maximum 15 members per group.
  • Leadership: Retired Army, CAPF, or J&K Police officer.
  • Command & Control: Operates under supervision of the District SP/SSP.

✅ Significance: Empowers local villagers for community-based security, ensures better vigilance in sensitive areas, and supplements formal security forces.

National Forensic Infrastructure Enhancement Scheme (NFIES)

• Approval: Cabinet-approved scheme.
• Purpose: To strengthen the criminal justice system.
• Objective:
  • Enhance forensic infrastructure,
  • Train professionals,
  • Ensure timely and scientific examination of evidence.
• Type: Central Sector Scheme.
• Tenure: 2024–25 to 2028–29.
• Key Components:
  • Establishment of new campuses of the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) across India.
  • Creation of Central Forensic Science Laboratories (CFSLs) to meet rising demand.
  • Upgradation of infrastructure at the Delhi Campus of NFSU.

✅ Significance: Provides modern scientific tools for investigation, reduces pendency of criminal cases, and improves conviction rates through reliable forensic evidence.