Which Indian cities show the strongest custodial death reporting signal?
A comparison of 45 Indian cities covered by Prism Geo.
18 pass the evidence gates and are ranked by exact
custodial_death-tagged news reports per 10,000 civic reports.
This measures the prominence of a topic in coverage—not real-world incidence, prevalence, or safety.
Geographic view · 18 city-linked districts
Where the custodial death reporting signal is concentrated
Every highlighted polygon is the 2021 administrative district containing a ranked city's coordinate. Color shows the city's reporting-signal rank band—not a measured district-wide rate, prevalence, or severity assessment.
Boundary geometry: geoBoundaries, ADM2, 2021 representation, Open Data Commons Open Database License 1.0. Districts are visual locators for city-ranked data and may not reflect later administrative changes.
How to read this ranking
Agra leads the normalized comparison at 20.17
tagged reports per 10,000 civic reports. Mumbai leads raw volume
with 53 reports. The two leaders can differ because normalization
controls for each city's overall civic-news footprint.
Cities evaluated
45
existing India profiles
Cities ranked
18
passed both evidence gates
Normalized leader
Agra
20.17 per 10K
Raw-volume leader
Mumbai
53 tagged reports
Largest recent rise
Lucknow
+4.77 per-10K points
National comparison
-1.13
recent per-10K change
Computed findings
What stands out
Normalization changes the picture: Agra ranks first by coverage share,
while Mumbai ranks first by article volume.
Coverage is concentrated: Mumbai, Chennai, Agra account for 54.2% of all
qualifying tagged reports in this table.
The aggregate signal moved from 2.81 per 10,000 reports in 2021–2023
to 1.68 in 2024–2025 across the 45-city universe.
Lucknow has the largest recent rise among cities with at least ten
tagged reports: +4.77 per-10K points.
Complete ranking
Primary and companion measures
Custodial Death reporting signal by city
The primary rank uses tagged reports per 10,000 civic reports. Raw rank,
recent change, and active years show whether a result depends on city size, timing, or a narrow burst.
21 tagged reports appeared within
10,412 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
20.17 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 30.37 in 2021–2023 versus 4.81
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2021.
Crime & violence · 11Policing & law enforcement · 10
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 1 reports (4.8%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
43 tagged reports appeared within
27,784 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
15.48 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 24.94 in 2021–2023 versus 3.99
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2022.
Policing & law enforcement · 23Crime & violence · 19Human Rights Social · 1
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 11 reports (25.6%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
4 tagged reports appeared within
2,820 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
14.18 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 24.21 in 2021–2023 versus 0.00
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2021.
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 1 reports (25.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
5 tagged reports appeared within
7,407 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
6.75 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 11.21 in 2021–2023 versus 0.00
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2022.
Policing & law enforcement · 3Crime & violence · 2
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
6 tagged reports appeared within
9,077 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
6.61 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 7.99 in 2021–2023 versus 3.54
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2023.
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
6 tagged reports appeared within
10,447 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
5.74 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 8.83 in 2021–2023 versus 0.00
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2021.
Crime & violence · 3Policing & law enforcement · 2Human Rights Social · 1
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
9 tagged reports appeared within
17,398 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
5.17 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 8.26 in 2021–2023 versus 1.30
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2022.
Policing & law enforcement · 5Crime & violence · 3Human Rights Social · 1
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
53 tagged reports appeared within
119,517 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
4.43 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a rising share of local civic coverage: 2.93 in 2021–2023 versus 6.99
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2024.
Crime & violence · 35Policing & law enforcement · 14Human Rights Social · 3
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 7 reports (13.2%) and conclusion language in 2 (3.8%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
5 tagged reports appeared within
12,851 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
3.89 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a rising share of local civic coverage: 3.04 in 2021–2023 versus 6.69
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2024.
Policing & law enforcement · 3Crime & violence · 2
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 1 reports (20.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
11 tagged reports appeared within
31,282 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
3.52 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 6.96 in 2021–2023 versus 0.00
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2022.
Crime & violence · 9Policing & law enforcement · 2
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
5 tagged reports appeared within
16,200 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
3.09 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a broadly stable share of local civic coverage: 2.92 in 2021–2023 versus 3.38
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2025.
Policing & law enforcement · 4Crime & violence · 1
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
10 tagged reports appeared within
35,340 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
2.83 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a rising share of local civic coverage: 0.94 in 2021–2023 versus 5.71
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2024.
Policing & law enforcement · 8Crime & violence · 1Human Rights Social · 1
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
3 tagged reports appeared within
14,562 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
2.06 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 3.45 in 2021–2023 versus 0.00
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2022.
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
3 tagged reports appeared within
14,806 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
2.03 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 3.11 in 2021–2023 versus 0.00
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2023.
Human Rights Social · 1Policing & law enforcement · 1Crime & violence · 1
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 1 reports (33.3%) and conclusion language in 1 (33.3%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
3 tagged reports appeared within
16,169 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
1.86 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 3.63 in 2021–2023 versus 0.00
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2021.
Policing & law enforcement · 2Crime & violence · 1
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
6 tagged reports appeared within
36,239 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
1.66 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a falling share of local civic coverage: 2.41 in 2021–2023 versus 0.65
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2022.
Policing & law enforcement · 4Crime & violence · 2
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 0 reports (0.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
4 tagged reports appeared within
58,199 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
0.69 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a broadly stable share of local civic coverage: 1.01 in 2021–2023 versus 0.35
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2021.
Policing & law enforcement · 2Crime & violence · 2
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 1 reports (25.0%) and conclusion language in 0 (0.0%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
19 tagged reports appeared within
297,207 civic reports in 2021–2025, equal to
0.64 per 10,000. The recent-period comparison shows
a broadly stable share of local civic coverage: 0.66 in 2021–2023 versus 0.60
in 2024–2025. The city's peak normalized year was 2025.
The classifier marked authority or institutional action in 1 reports (5.3%) and conclusion language in 1 (5.3%). These are article-level signals: repeated coverage can
refer to the same underlying event, and the markers do not prove official resolution.
Annual values use all covered cities, including cities that do not pass the page-level ranking gate.
Transparent limits
How Prism Geo built this ranking
Universe: 45 Indian cities with an existing Prism Geo city manifest; conservative legacy names such as Bangalore/Bengaluru are merged.
Window: complete calendar years 2021–2025. Partial 2026 data is excluded.
Signal: the exact source tag custodial_death; topic variants are not silently combined.
Score: tagged reports ÷ all civic reports × 10,000; raw volume is shown alongside it.
Coverage, action, and conclusion figures are classifier outputs. Multiple reports can concern one event, and absence of coverage is not absence of a problem.
Source: marketai.civic_geo_agg. This dataset supports comparison of reporting patterns only; it cannot establish actual case counts, risk, prevalence, or official performance.
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