In 2023, the country registered 1,77,335 cases of crimes against children, marking a 9.2 per cent rise from 2022, as per the latest NCRB report. The crime rate reached 39.9 per one lakh child population in 2023, up from 36.6 in 2022. In 2022, there were 1,62,449 such cases, while in 2021 the figure was 1,49,404. “A total of 1,77,335 cases of crime against children were recorded during 2023, showing an increase of 9.2 per cent over 2022,” the report said.
Types of crimes reported
The data showed that the biggest share of these crimes fell under “Kidnapping and Abduction of Children” and offences under the “Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO).” There were 40,434 cases of penetrative sexual assault, affecting 40,846 victims. After this, aggravated assaults and harassment made up 22,444 cases. Kidnapping and abduction became the single largest category, with 79,884 IPC cases that affected 82,106 children, equal to a rate of 18 per one lakh. Out of these, 58,927 were general abductions, including 37,844 cases where missing children were later found kidnapped. In addition, 14,637 cases were about abducting minor girls to force marriage.
Victims and offenders
Out of the total 40,846 victims, 762 were below six years, 3,229 were between six and 12 years, 15,444 were in the 12–16 years group, and 21,411 were aged between 16–18 years. Most of the victims in rape-related crimes were girls. Among the 40,434 cases of sexual assault, in 39,076 instances the offenders were known to the victims. These included family members in 3,224 cases, neighbours, employers or other known people in 15,146 cases, and friends, online friends or live-in partners in 20,706 cases.
Other serious offences
The NCRB report also noted 1,219 murders of children, including 89 linked to rape or POCSO crimes. There were 3,050 cases of simple hurt and 373 incidents of abetment to suicide. Cases under special and local laws added further, with 6,038 under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act and 1,390 under the Child Labour Act.
States and police response
Madhya Pradesh reported the highest number of such crimes with 22,393 cases, followed by Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. Assam saw a sharp rise with 10,174 cases, while Bihar recorded 9,906. Among Union Territories, Delhi reported 7,769 cases, showing a high rate, along with the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The overall chargesheeting rate was 64.3 per cent. It was higher in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh but lower in Delhi and Haryana. Out of 2,57,756 cases investigated, 1,12,290 were chargesheeted, while 80,198 remained pending at the end of the year.
