Asia · Southern Asia

India

High confidence

Verified 20 May 2026 · Data dated 31 Dec 2024

Fresh · 9d ago

Roughly three quarters of inmates are undertrials. National Crime Records Bureau publishes a comprehensive 'Prison Statistics India' annual.

Compare India World Prison Brief page

Data is aggregated from public sources and may be incomplete or out of date. Always verify with primary sources before acting on any figure. See data sources.

Prison population

511,542

Year: 2024

Rate per 100,000

Per 100,000 residents

Occupancy

112.7%

Above design capacity

Pre-trial / remand

72.6%

Share not yet sentenced

Female prisoners

4.1%

Foreign nationals

1.5%

Conditions risk — across 296 facilities

Average of our computed Conditions Risk Score across the country's facilities. Methodology · Browse highest-risk

33/100

national average

1 moderate 295 unknown

How India compares

vs Asia (14) & global averages

Rate per 100,000this: 36 · region: 173 · global: 214

Occupancy ratethis: 113% · region: 151% · global: 125%

Pre-trial sharethis: 73% · region: 30% · global: 32%

The vertical ticks mark the global (grey) and regional (amber) means. Bars are clipped at the high end for readability.

Prison population over time

Annual figures, latest survey year

2000: 272,079+79.5% over 20y2020: 488,511

Reform in India

All reform →

Laws, programmes, and pilots changing how India incarcerates — plus relevant research.

Section 479 BNSS — release of long-detained undertrials2024–ongoing
pre trial detention · active
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) Section 479, in force from July 2024, requires release of undertrial prisoners who have served one-third of the maximum sentence for non-capital offences (one-half for first-time offenders).

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Held

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See all 296 prisons in India →

Data completeness

100%

Score based on how many fields are populated. We surface this so you know where the gaps are.

National population: 438,700,0002024
Source-verified: 20 May 2026
Source links: 1 cited

Sources

Direct citations for the figures on this page.

Primary reference
World Prison Brief (ICPS, Birkbeck) — Institute for Crime & Justice Policy Research
See /data-sources for our methodology.

Recent reports

Tihar Jail2 May 2023
Court took suo motu cognisance of the murder of inmate Tillu Tajpuriya inside Tihar; ordered review of intra-prison movement and segregation of high-risk inmates.
Delhi High Court · source