The Kalina Forensic Science Laboratory, handling crime cases from across the state, saw a 44 per cent case pendency in 2022. Though the rate is lower than 2021, the arrears of 2021 are the highest in the past seven years, taking the total pendency of 2022 to an all-time high. The pendency is attributed to the high level of vacancy in the department across class one, two, and three posts. The statistics were revealed in Praja Foundation’s annual report, ‘State of policing and law and order in Mumbai 2023’. It delves into statistics for crime, cyber crime, forensics, and vacancies.

The pendency at the Kalina Forensic Laboratory, which is a central lab helping commissionerates across the state, is worrying considering its major contribution to securing convictions. According to data procured by Praja, the lab does not appear to be capable of handling the caseload. In 2016, 36,157 cases were received by the lab, of which 73 per cent were examined and 27 per cent carried forward to 2017. In 2022, even though the cases were 32,109, the arrears were 26,095.