[2] A station house officer is not a rank, but rather a post or designation.
In India, the law permits a station house officer to conduct the investigation of crimes.
[3] As of 1 January 2022, there are a total of 16,955 sanctioned police stations in India.
[4][5] In some states in India, the SHO is also called the Officer-in-charge (OC), mostly in rural areas where a police station is headed by a Sub-inspector of police.
In West Bengal, mostly in urban or semi-urban areas, where a police station is headed by an inspector, is called the Inspector-in-charge (IC) The Station House Officer: