By Prof. Supriya Pattanayak
The nation has stepped into an era that is defined by technology and data. Social justice is now more relevant than ever before as the value of human life improves. While the police does its investigation, the forensic department plays a key role in ensuring justice. As portrayed by crime shows, forensic science is beyond investigation and involves ethics, innovation and a problem-solving attitude. From dealing with cyber forensics to DNA analysis, the requirement for skilled experts has increased.
The need of the hour is an education that bridges theory with hands-on, real-world problem-solving.
Forensic science is not just a career path but a mission to shape India’s future and ensure truth and justice prevail.
Over the past decade, forensic education in India has seen significant growth. With 9 universities granting forensic degrees in 2010, the field has grown with 10 National Forensic Sciences Universities (NFSUs) being created since 2009, followed by accelerated growth since 2020.
Moreover, more than 165 private universities and colleges have added forensic science courses. However, it has been seen that there is a 40.3 per cent vacancy rate of scientific positions across 26 forensic laboratories.
To address this, universities must offer a multi-pronged approach. First, by offering paid internships to rigorously trained students, we can provide immediate coverage for the laboratories. Second, bringing the talented graduates into permanent positions generates capacity for the long-run.
Third, utilising retired forensic experts may provide interim coverage. Through thoughtful agreements with universities and private partners, we can fix the issue of staffing the laboratories with qualified professionals until all authorised positions are filled and strengthen the forensic capability of laboratories nationwide.
Calculating the actual number of forensic labs and colleges needed is a difficult, but important, task, considering India’s 806 districts, 27 state forensic science labs, 80 or so regional FSLs, and 9 CFSLs. To meet the rising case load and complexity, the massive development of specialist institutes is necessary.
By fostering collaborations with universities like Centurion, which prioritise hands-on forensic training, we can cultivate a robust pipeline of experts, ensuring the nation’s forensic infrastructure keeps pace with rising demands for justice and scientific precision. Attention now has to be directed towards scaling up, making these institutions operational with trained teachers and strong infrastructure to provide for the increasing need for trained forensic professionals.
While it is not the norm, universities providing skill-based education can collaborate with state police. Such a groundbreaking collaboration will mark a pivotal stride in bridging academia and law enforcement, empowering our students with unparalleled real-world immersion. The forensic sciences students will interact directly with actual live cases at cutting-edge labs and police stations, moving on from theoretical simulations to real-world scenarios that develop job-ready skills. For the state police, this collaboration infuses fresh talents – the interns, empowered with innovative methods, will supplement the force’s 1,900 forensic openings in 3-6 months, strengthening the state’s investigative power and promoting justice through innovation.
In order to overcome the lack of properly qualified professors in forensic science, I have also proposed using PhD-qualified academics to teach at the university level, while also utilising experienced scientists, physicians, and retired law enforcement officers as visiting or adjunct faculty to provide exposure to real-world experiences.
Simultaneously, we must invest in faculty development programmes to develop young faculty’s rigour in the laboratory and research training/support.
Strategic international collaborations, coupled with the use of virtual labs, can facilitate short-term and long-term methods to ensure students have the opportunity to engage with educators who have the educational background and real-world experiences in the field of forensic science, towards maintaining uncompromising levels of quality in our educational programs.
The future is bright for those who look beyond the generic courses and understand that the workforce requires people who already have hands on understanding of their subjects. This approach is beneficial to the industry as well as the students.
(The author is the Vice Chancellor of Centurion University of Technology and Management, Odisha)
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