Crimes against SC/STs, women & children rose last year: NCRB

NT Correspondent

New Delhi: The annual Crime in India report highlighted a notable increase in incidents of crimes against women, children, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and cyber-related cases in 2022 compared to the preceding year.

This comprehensive report, serving as the primary reference for crime statistics in the country since 1953, is compiled by the National Crime Records Bureau.

Traditionally released by the end of July or in August, this year's publication deviated from the norm, coinciding with the ongoing vote counting for Assembly elections in four states.

According to the report, there were 445,256 registered cases of crimes against women in 2022, marking a 4% rise from the 428,278 cases reported in 2021.

The majority of these cases were linked to cruelty by spouses or their relatives (31.4%), followed by kidnapping and abduction (19.2%), assault "with intent to outrage modesty" (18.7%), and rape (7.1%).

In the realm of crimes against children, the report disclosed an overall increase, with 162,449 cases registered in 2022, reflecting an 8.7% uptick compared to the 149,404 cases recorded in 2021.

Data showed that crimes against Scheduled Castes increased by 13.1%, from 50,900 cases in 2021 to 57,582 cases last year. The crimes against Scheduled Tribes jumped by 14.3% from 8,802 to 10,064 cases last year.