With an increase in crime, courses in criminology and forensic science have gained importance. Several students are taking up the course largely to get a kick of solving a criminal case, but this is a subject that involves a strong combination of physics, chemistry, psychology, botany, digital and cyber forensics.
While Criminology is about study of behavioural pattern of criminals and the nature of crimes, Forensic Science on the other hand is based on dealing with crime scientifically. There are BA, MA and LLM courses in Criminology whereas there are BSc courses in forensic science.
Pradeep Yadav, district scientific officer at Tikamgarh, Madhya Pradesh and asst. professor, Bundelkhand University, says, "Forensic science is all about the methodology and use of various sciences for justice. A forensic investigation is based on investigating on the basis of evidences and conclusions made by the forensic experts."
"This includes something as simple as fake cheques, forged documents or something as common as online banking frauds, cyber hacking etc. No police investigation cannot be taken forward until the forensic expert gives a go-ahead."
It is important to choose the subjects at the graduation level. "A forensic expert should have complete knowledge about various sciences. For instance, in case of a murder through a gun, the impact and possible speed of bullet has to be calculated through physics. Students learn toxicology in chemistry to deal with cases related to explosives or contaminated food products or poisoning. During the practical examinations, students are given tasks such as extracting deleted data from pen drives, using bio metrics for tracking criminal history, or cloning Sim cards."
Since the relevance of forensic science has increased, the employability of students studying this subject has increased too. Yadav says, "Students who study courses in forensic science are sent for research works and training in state and national laboratories for forensic sciences. In India, the demand of forensic scientists has increased as the crimes are soaring high. Careers in forensic science and criminology are increasing with day to day establishments in the field of investigation."
"Forensic scientists are being hired by public and private firms at various levels. A senior scientific assistant can earn over Rs 30000 a month, whereas the job positions increase from junior scientific officer to scientific officer and then to senior scientific officer, the grade pays gradually starts increasing. A district scientific officer, who is at par with District Superintendent of Police, can earn about Rs 54000 per month," says Yadav.
G.S.Venumadhava, co-ordinator, criminology and forensic science, Karnataka University, says "The students who study criminology get into police and prison administration. They study different types of crimes and the psychology of criminals, to conclude about the possible reasons of crime.
The study of criminology started in Italy, by Cesare Lombroso who conceptualised 'born criminals', so most of the things taught in criminology courses are the same as that in police training.
Colleges and universities offering courses in criminology and forensic science:-
1. Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan National Institute of Criminology and Forensic Science, New Delhi
2. Institute of Forensic Science, Mumbai
3. Bundelkhand University, Uttar Pradesh
4. Karnataka University
5. Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU), New Delhi
6. Dr. Hari Singh Gour University, Sagar
7. Dr.Bhim Rao Ambedkar University, Agra
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