The National Police Commission in 1979 recommended the creation of a "Nodal Agency" which would suggest a common format for maintenance of Crime-Criminal records at all the police stations in the country, with the same common format being utilized to create shareable databases at police stations and districts and at state and federal Level.
On this recommendation NCRB was created in 1986 with amalgamation of the Directorate of Coordination Police Computers, Central Finger Print Bureau, Data Section of Coordination Division of Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistical Section of the Bureau of Police Research and Development.