172+ Girls Missing, 170 Girls Kidnapped, 3 Girls Trafficked Everyday
According to the NCRB report, in 2022 on average every day more than 172 girls went missing, another 170 girls were kidnapped, and almost three girls were trafficked. While more than the number of trafficked girls were rescued in the same year, a large number of missing and kidnapped or abducted girls remained untraced and unrecovered.
375,058 women, 90,113 girls went missing in India in 2021: NCRB data
In 2021, Maharashtra topped the list of the most number of women missing at 56,498, followed by Madhya Pradesh (55,704), West Bengal (50,998), and Odisha (29,582).
Sources:
https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1942880
Data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), in its publication ‘Crime in India’ showed that a total of 375,058 women (above the age of 18) went missing in India in 2021, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in a press release.
As many as 90,113 girls (below the age of 18) were reported missing in 2021.
The press release stated that it is the responsibility of respective state governments to maintain law and order, including investigation and prosecution of crimes against women.
However, the Centre has taken a number of initiatives for the safety of women across the country, which are listed below:
The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018 was enacted to prescribe stringent penal provisions, including the death penalty for the rape of girls below the age of 12 years. The Act also mandates the completion of investigation and filing of chargesheet in rape cases in two months and trials to be completed in two months.
The MHA launched a cybercrime reporting portal in September 2018 for citizens to report obscene content.
In February 2019, the MHA launched an online analytic tool, “investigation tracking system for sexual offenses” for the police to track time-bound investigations in sexual assault cases in accordance with the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2018.
The ministry approved two projects for setting up and strengthening of women help desks in police stations and anti-human trafficking units across the country.
The Ministry of Women and Child Development has set up 733 one-stop centres in the country to provide assistance to women affected by violence and in distress.
Meanwhile, the Maharashtra government has also undertaken a number of steps for women safety in Maharashtra.
The state government started a ‘Mahila Police Kaksha’, a help desk for women at every police station, to handle the cases regarding crime against women.
Special Juvenile Police Unit and Child Welfare Police Officer (SJPU & CWPO)-
A special juvenile police unit is formed in all 49 police units across the state and one police officer is appointed in each police station all across the state.
The state government has set up a toll-free helpline no.103 for Mumbai, Thane, and Navi Mumbai, and for the rest of Maharashtra, helpline no. 1091 is set up.
According to the press release, In 2021, Maharashtra topped the list of the most women missing at 56,498, followed by Madhya Pradesh (55,704), West Bengal (50,998), and Odisha (29,582).
In 2020, as many as 320,393 women and 71,204 girls went missing across the country.
In the year 2019, 318,448 women and 73,509 girls went missing across India.
