Study on Some Improvised Revolvers

India has a very strong firearm Act (Arms Act 1959). The possession and ownership of different firearms are closely regulated by the government/law enforcement agency. However, the use of country-made gun for criminal activities is very alarming within India. It is reported that a few years back about 88% of the gun-violence were committed by illegal or unlicensed firearms [1]. The use of improvised guns for criminal activities is rising in an exponential manner. The law enforcement agencies are not able to control unlicensed firearms since these are available in illicit market which is unregulated. Moreover, due to insufficient intelligence and manufacturing in remote areas, the police are not able to control firearm trafficking [2,3]. As per National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Govt. of India report [1] of the year 2011, the number of victims murdered by unlicensed firearm is seven times more than those killed by the licensed firearms. There are about 3,00,000 illegal firearms [4,5] in the national capital and following reasons for the increase of such firearms are [6]:


Introduction
India has a very strong firearm Act (Arms Act 1959). The possession and ownership of different firearms are closely regulated by the government/law enforcement agency. However, the use of country-made gun for criminal activities is very alarming within India. It is reported that a few years back about 88% of the gun-violence were committed by illegal or unlicensed firearms [1]. The use of improvised guns for criminal activities is rising in an exponential manner. The law enforcement agencies are not able to control unlicensed firearms since these are available in illicit market which is unregulated. Moreover, due to insufficient intelligence and manufacturing in remote areas, the police are not able to control firearm trafficking [2,3]. As per National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Govt. of India report [1] of the year 2011, the number of victims murdered by unlicensed firearm is seven times more than those killed by the licensed firearms. There are about 3,00,000 illegal firearms [4,5] in the national capital and following reasons for the increase of such firearms are [6]: A. Possession of gun considered as status symbol for some individual in the society B.
Easy procurement without license or registration to escape tracing C.
An alternative against costly one  The improvised revolvers of .38 caliber received in four different cases are studied in this paper. Before test firing was completed, revolvers were examined thoroughly with Borescope (KARL STORZ, Germany). The revolvers' overall length, barrel length, muzzle diameter, breech diameter, trigger pull and weights were also measured with the scientific instrument available in the laboratory (Figures 1-5).     All the improvised revolvers discussed in the paper are devoid of logo, code number including manufacturer's identity having unfinished look. The physical features of the improvised revolvers are shown in (Table 1). Their muzzle and breech diameter vary from firearm to firearm. The revolvers of a specific caliber are made skillfully to fire factory made ammunition of same caliber. The measurement of muzzle velocity, range of firing etc found not at par with the standard revolvers due to the substandard barrel length, internal diameter and absence of rifling. Further, the body parts of revolvers are made of indigenous material and sometimes insufficient to withstand pressure resulting explosion of barrel. The information furnished on CM revolvers on various points will be of much helpful to the firearm expert and users.

Conclusion
The present study deals with the examination of improvised revolvers received in the laboratory for forensic study. It is observed that crude materials locally available are used for making such firearms by gunsmith. Various parameters of the revolvers have been recorded to prepare a database for further study. Test firing by these revolvers have been conducted successfully in the laboratory and the muzzle velocity, range of firing etc found to be less than the standard.
In order to control the illegal gun culture among the criminal elements, following action plans are recommended by way of suggestion: Investigation using forensic evidence is to be strengthened.

F.
Much research has to be undertaken to study the tool marks present on the body of such illegal firearms to identify the offenders.