Established in 1963, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the premier investigation agency of India which focusses primarily on economic crimes and corruption charges, though at times, it is put in charge of investigating other crimes as well. It is analogous in structure to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the United States and is a Central subject under the Constitution of India, (which means that it reports to the Indian Government and not to the individual states.)
Normally, cases assigned to the CBI are sensitive and of national importance. It is a usual practice for the respective state police department, to register any case coming under its juridiction initially, and if necessary, through mediation by the central government, the cases may be transferred to the CBI.
It is the official Interpol unit for India. A director of CBI, P.C.Sharma, was elected in October, 2003 as Vice-President of Interpol. The current director of CBI is Shri Umashankar Mishra (December 6, 2003 - )
