New Delhi: The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has completed 12 consecutive months without an operational fatality for the first time in 47 years, despite remaining deployed across India’s principal internal security theatres. The last comparable period ended in January 1979, while the prime minister, Narendra Modi, praised the achievement on Tuesday.
The CRPF director general, GP Singh, said the last operational death occurred on October 30, 2025. Announcing the milestone on X, he credited better equipment, training, planning and emergency medical response, while stressing that the force continued to conduct intensive operations.
Modi acknowledged the record in a separate X post, writing: “A ZERO that speaks volumes.” The Prime Minister’s Office highlighted his message later on Tuesday.
Faster treatment after injuries
Singh said modern equipment and improved operational planning had been accompanied by a stronger focus on evacuating wounded personnel to secondary and tertiary medical facilities. He described round the clock helicopter and air-ambulance support during high-intensity operations as a “game changer”.
Speaking to the Organizer, the CRPF chief said an internal review of fatalities over the preceding five years showed that nearly three-quarters of deaths occurred hours or days after an incident, rather than immediately. Faster access to specialist medical care, particularly at Delhi’s AIIMS Trauma Centre, had helped address that critical period, he said.
For comparison, 12 deaths were reported in 2024 across Chhattisgarh, Jammu & Kashmir and Manipur, Hindustan Times reported. Of nine fatalities recorded up to October 30, 2025, eight were in left-wing extremism-affected areas and one occurred during field firing practice.
Deployments and historical record
The CRPF, India’s largest Central Armed Police Force, has around 3.25 lakh personnel. It undertakes counterterrorism duties in Jammu & Kashmir, operations against Maoist insurgents in left-wing extremism-affected areas and counter-insurgency assignments in the Northeast, alongside other internal security responsibilities.
The current 12-month record concerns deaths during operational duties, rather than all-cause mortality among personnel. It does not mean the force recorded no injuries, suicides or non-operational deaths during that period.
Raised as the crown representative’s police in 1939, the organization acquired its current name under the CRPF Act in 1949. Official figures cited by PTI put its historical line-of-duty deaths at 2,270, a cumulative figure covering a much longer period than the latest operational record.
The force lost 40 personnel in the February 2019 Pulwama terrorist attack, one of its deadliest incidents in Jammu & Kashmir.
Separately, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) took suo motu cognisance in August of reports that 19 CRPF personnel had died by suicide between January and May 22, 2026. The commission cited reports of 281 such deaths since 2021, including 216 involving personnel on duty. It sought detailed reports from the union home secretary and CRPF chief, expressing concern over personnel welfare. These deaths are distinct from operational fatalities.
The CRPF chief said the force remained committed to maintaining security while continuing efforts to improve the safety of personnel.