New Delhi | Aug 17, 2025 : Artificial Intelligence has once again shown its potential in law enforcement. In a shocking hit-and-run incident in Nagpur on Raksha Bandhan, a woman was killed after a speeding truck ran her over. With only fragments of information available, police managed to trace and arrest the accused within 36 hours — thanks to AI-powered investigation.

The victim’s husband, who survived the accident, was left devastated and could provide little to the authorities. “All he knew was that the truck had red markings. He could neither describe its size nor make,” said Harsh Poddar, Superintendent of Police, Nagpur Rural, in an interview said that.

On August 9, the couple was traveling by bike when a truck hit them. The woman fell to the ground and was crushed under the vehicle, which sped away from the scene. In his grief, the man tied his wife’s body to his motorcycle to take her back to their village in Madhya Pradesh — a video of which has been widely circulated on social media.

With such limited leads, the Nagpur police turned to technology. Investigators collected CCTV footage from three toll nakas located 15–20 kilometers apart. The data, comprising hours of visuals, was run through AI systems built on Computer Vision technology.

SP Poddar explained that two AI algorithms were used. “The first algorithm scanned all the footage to identify trucks with red markings. The second analysed their average speeds to flag which one could be involved in the accident. On this basis, one truck was shortlisted,” he said. Acting swiftly, a police team traced the vehicle nearly 700 km away on the Gwalior-Kanpur highway and arrested the accused driver.

The breakthrough was powered by MARVEL (Maharashtra Research and Vigilance for Enhanced Law Enforcement), India’s first state-level police AI system, wholly developed and owned by the Maharashtra government. MARVEL’s objective, according to Poddar, is to create AI-based solutions for law enforcement and other state departments using government-held metadata.

“We have partnered with 13 departments so far. The government is a huge data repository, and AI helps us put that data to practical use. Many other states are studying this model and planning to replicate it,” the officer noted.

Highlighting AI’s speed and efficiency, Poddar said the system drastically reduces investigation timelines. “We get terabytes of metadata — from financial frauds to organized crime. Earlier, experienced officers manually studied patterns in this data, which took weeks or even months. Now, the same volume can be processed in minutes. In this case, 12 hours of CCTV footage was analysed in just 12–15 minutes,” he explained.

While physical investigation remains essential, AI has become a force multiplier. It eliminates human error, speeds up complex analysis, and enables quick arrests. Maharashtra’s success story with MARVEL is now drawing attention nationwide as states look to replicate the technology-driven policing model.

For the victim’s family in Nagpur, the arrest offers some solace. And for law enforcement, this case marks another milestone in how AI can transform justice delivery.