Discuss how the three new criminal laws seek to modernise India's criminal justice system through technology. What administrative challenges do States face in their implementation?

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, in force from 1 July 2024, replaced the colonial IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act [1]. They make technology the backbone of investigation and trial, but delivery rests on State police machinery.

Technology as the engine of modernisation

• e-Sakshya digitises the evidence chain — crime-scene videography, photography and testimony are stored on an e-evidence server accessible to courts, curbing tampering [2].
• Nyaya Setu interlinks Police, Medical, Forensic, Prosecution and Prisons on one dashboard, giving the investigating officer case information at a click [2].
• Nyaya Shruti enables examination of witnesses by video conferencing, and e-Summon delivers court summons electronically, cutting delays in producing undertrials and witnesses [2].
• Section 530, BNSS permits trials, inquiries and proceedings in electronic mode, while e-FIR allows registration through oral or electronic communication irrespective of jurisdiction — widening access for remote citizens [1].
• Statutory discipline reinforces the digital push: trial within three years and judgment within 45 days of reserving [1].

Administrative challenges before States

• Scale of capacity building: BPR&D supplies 13 training modules, but actual training of a police force of roughly 22.5 lakh is executed by States/UTs, risking rushed, uneven quality [1].
• Uneven notification: at the one-year mark only 23 States/UTs had completed full capacity building; e-evidence and e-summons were notified in 11, Nyaya Shruti in 6 and community service in 12 [3].
• Federal coordination: criminal law being a Concurrent List subject, each State must frame rules — necessitating repeated Centre–State review meetings [4].
• Infrastructure deficits: forensic manpower, server capacity and last-mile connectivity in rural police stations remain thin [2].

Technology has re-engineered process; outcomes now depend on institutional depth. Sustained funding for forensic and digital infrastructure, continuous rather than one-time training, and time-bound State notifications — monitored through the existing review mechanism — can convert statutory promise into citizen-felt speedy justice, advancing the Article 21 guarantee of a fair and swift trial.