India 2020 Crime & Safety Report: Mumbai This is an annual report produced in conjunction with the Regional Security Office at the U.S. Consulate General in Mumbai. OSAC encourages travelers to use this report to gain baseline knowledge of security conditions in India. For more in-depth information, review OSAC’s India-specific webpage for original OSAC reporting, consular messages, and contact information, some of which may be available only to private-sector representatives with an OSAC password. Travel Advisory The current U.S. Department of State Travel Advisory at the date of this report’s publication assesses most of India at Level 2, indicating travelers should exercise increased caution due to crime and terrorism. Some areas have increased risk: do not travel to the state of Jammu and Kashmir (except the eastern Ladakh region and its capital, Leh) due to terrorism and civil unrest; and do not travel to within ten kilometers of the border with Pakistan due to the potential for armed conflict. Review OSAC’s report, Understanding the Consular Travel Advisory System Overall Crime and Safety Situation The Consulate represents the United States in Western India, including the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Goa. Crime Threats The U.S. Department of State has assessed Mumbai as being a MEDIUM-threat location for crime directed at or affecting official U.S. government. Although it is a city with an estimated population of more than 25 million people, Mumbai remains relatively safe for expatriates. Being involved in a traffic accident remains more probable than being a victim of a crime, provided you practice good personal security. The Mumbai Police force lacks training and are overworked, but seem to do a reasonable job in securing the city. Petty crime or crimes of opportunity have affected expatriates with reports of stolen bags, passports, and other valuables. Most of these crimes occur in a non-confrontational / nonviolent manner. Areas foreigners frequent are less vulnerable due to a generally adequate police presence. Violent crimes do occur in Mumbai, but are generally isolated in more high-density areas such as slums and crowded apartment blocks. While the potential exists for a foreigner to be a victim of both violent or property crime, there are no indications that criminals specifically target the expatriate community. Review OSAC’s reports, All That You Should Leave Behind. Residential theft is a common occurrence amongst the Indian population, normally occurring when the property is vacant. Violence resulting in serious injury or death is relatively rare. Most commonly, residential theft involves household staff either stealing directly from their employer or allowing acquaintances into the residence while the employer is away. Review OSAC’s reports, Hotels: The Inns and Outs and Considerations for Hotel Security. There have been reports of local political organizations pressuring Western companies, particularly in more rural areas, to hire certain workers or vendors. In rare cases, organized crime elements make extortion threats. India 2020 Crime & Safety Report: Mumbai While it appears that some criminal groups target lower-income Indian citizens and tourists, there have been reports of criminals using the names of actual U.S. diplomats, businesses, or individuals in their fraudulent materials. Other Areas of Concern Avoid walking in isolated areas alone at any time. Use caution when in high poverty areas of the city, and around large public celebrations. Avoid the Red Light district of Kamathipura. The Department of State recommends avoiding travel within ten kilometers of the India-Pakistan border. Both countries maintain a strong military presence along the border. The only official India-Pakistan border crossing point for persons who are not citizens of India or Pakistan is in Punjab between Attari, India, and Wagah, Pakistan. The border crossing is usually open; confirm the status prior to travel. A Pakistani visa is required to enter Pakistan. Only U.S. citizens residing in India may apply for a Pakistani visa in India. The Pakistani government requires that U.S. citizens resident in India must first come to the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi to sign an affidavit of intent to apply for the Pakistani visa before submitting their application. Otherwise, apply for a Pakistani visa in your country of residence before traveling to India. Cybersecurity Issues The complexity and capability of organizations conducting organized white-collar financial scams and cybercrime continues to expand. Indian authorities report that West African/Nigerian fraud rings are active in Mumbai and Goa. Many scams are perpetrated by email, texts, ruse phone calls, and call centers involving the promise or guarantee of a U.S. visa in conjunction with employment overseas. Scammers use similar fake email domains, for example @diplomats.com or @us-traveldocs.com. Often the scams include past and present names of U.S. Consulate staff, officers, Ambassadors, and Principal Officers to give an air of credibility to their emails. Those who fall victim often wire money to bank accounts that are immediately emptied or closed, and the source of the scams may or may not even reside in India. Police have busted numerous call centers across Maharashtra and Gujarat responsible for tricking thousands of U.S. victims into transferring money for scams, including posing as IRS agents, USCIS officers, and family members in distress. Most victims were targeted for a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars, usually small enough amounts that make it not worth the time for foreigners to pursue legally, since doing so would require them to register a case in Indian courts in person, or show up for trials that could be years later. Several hundred individuals with U.S. visas/travel documents have been the targets of fraud by organized criminals who copy or steal their passport and U.S. visa information in order to apply online for foreign visas to facilitate human smuggling outside of India. Imposters pose electronically as family members to apply for visas to Western countries, use the U.S. visa information to bolster their claims to legitimate travel. India 2020 Crime & Safety Report: Mumbai It is illegal to bring satellite phones into India regardless of whether you are transiting, visiting, or staying in India. Authorities have arrested increasing numbers of foreign nationals, including U.S. travelers, at airports around India for carrying satellite phones. The ban on the use and/or import of satellite phones in India remains strictly enforced. Review OSAC’s reports, Cybersecurity Basics, Best Practices for Maximizing Security on Public Wi-Fi, Traveling with Mobile Devices: Trends & Best Practices, The Overseas Traveler’s Guide to ATM Skimmers & Fraud, Taking Credit, and Satellite Phones: Critical or Contraband? Transportation-Safety Situation Road Safety and Road Conditions Roads in Mumbai are in moderate condition, but the city's infrastructure is not keeping pace with rapid population growth and development. Traffic congestion throughout the city is significant at virtually all times, with a corresponding increase in the number of high-speed traffic accidents and fatalities, particularly on the few highways. Maharashtra officials report that approximately 72,000 accidents occur every year in the state, resulting in an average of 14,000 deaths. Mumbai continues to see an increase in auto accidents. Local media reports that an Indian dies every three minutes in a road accident. In general, most areas lack basic traffic law enforcement. Many drivers routinely ignore traffic rules without regard to safety. Travel by road in India is dangerous; travel at night is particularly hazardous. Buses, the transport mode of choice for hundreds of millions of Indians, are convenient in that they service most cities. Unfortunately, bus drivers usually drive without much of what Western travelers would understand as rules of the road. Accidents are quite common. Trains, while statistically safer than buses, also suffer accidents with alarming regularity; train accidents and fatalities gain increasing media attention due to the high death tolls when they do occur. Traffic in India moves on the left. It is important to be alert while crossing streets and intersections, especially after dark, as traffic is coming in the "wrong" direction (i.e. from the right). Travelers should remember to use seatbelts in both rear and front seats where available, and to ask their drivers to maintain a safe speed. At intersections, there are frequently throngs of indigent individuals and street hawkers. Keep windows rolled up and doors locked. Drivers must have either a valid Indian driver’s license or a valid international driver’s license. Because of difficult road and traffic conditions, many U.S. travelers who visit India hire a local driver. On Indian roads, “might makes right.” For example, many vehicles, including buses and trucks, run red lights and merge directly into traffic at yield points and traffic circles. Cars, auto-rickshaws, bicycles, and pedestrians behave only slightly more cautiously, but are often as or more aggressive than larger vehicles. Frequent use of the vehicle horn, without clear indication as the reason for its use, is customary. India 2020 Crime & Safety Report: Mumbai Outside major cities, main roads and arteries are often poorly controlled or maintained, and frequently congested. Even main roads frequently have only two lanes, with poor visibility and inadequate warning markers. On the few divided highways, expect to meet local transportation traveling in the wrong direction, often without lights after dark. Heavy traffic is the norm and includes (but is not limited to) overloaded trucks and buses, scooters, pedestrians, bullock and camel carts, occasional horse or elephant riders en route to weddings or celebrations, bicycles, and free-roaming livestock. If a driver hits a pedestrian or a stray animal, crowds can form quickly, often surrounding the vehicles and individuals involved.