Lok Sabha Question No. 469 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-12-09
Subject: Sexual Assaults against Women
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Mala Rajya Laxmi Shah, Pushpendra Singh Chandel

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA UN-STARRED QUESTION NO. 469

TO BE ANSWERED ON 09.12.2022

## SEXUAL ASSAULTS AGAINST WOMEN

## 469.    SHRIMATI MALA RAJYA LAXMI SHAH SHRI KUNWAR PUSHPENDRA SINGH CHANDEL

Will the Minister of WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  has  taken  the  cognizance  of  increasing  number  of sexual assaults against women;
- (b) if  so,  the  details  thereof  during  the  last  three  years,  State-wise  with  special reference to Uttarakhand and Bundelkhand region; and
- (c) the steps being taken by the Government to check such crimes?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI)

(a)  &  (b)  : National  Crime  Records  Bureau  (NCRB)  compiles  and  publishes  data  on crimes, including crime against women (including sexual assault against women), in its publication  'Crime  in  India'.  The  said  report  is  available  for  the  year  upto  2021.  The State  /  UT-wise  details  of  crime  against  women  for  the  last  3  years  upto  2021  are placed at Annexure.

(c) : ''Police' and 'Public Order' are State subjects under the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India. The responsibility to maintain law and order, protection of life and property of the citizens including investigation and prosecution of crime against women and  children rests primarily with the respective  State  Governments.  The  State Governments are competent to deal with such offences under the extant provisions of laws.

Keeping  in  mind  the  vision  articulated  in  Constitutional  provisions,  there  has  been enactment  of  various  legislations  such  as  the  Indian  Penal  Code,  the  Criminal  Law Amendments  of  2013  and  2018,  the  Dowry  Prohibition  Act,  1961,  the  Protection  of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 and the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 which address the issue of gender inequality, discrimination and violence faced by women.

The Government has also undertaken several schematic interventions in order to ensuring  safety  and  security  of  women.  These  include  One  Stop  Centres  (OSCs); Universalisation  of  Women  Helplines  (WHL),  Shakti  Sadan,  Emergency  Response Support System (ERSS) which is a pan-India single number (112)/ mobile app based system for emergencies; a cyber-crime reporting portal to report obscene content; safe city  projects  in  8  cities  (Ahmedabad,  Bengaluru,  Chennai,  Delhi,  Hyderabad,  Kolkata, Lucknow  and  Mumbai)  including  infrastructure,  technology  adoption  and  capacity building in community through awareness programmes, training and skill development programs for Investigation Officers, Prosecution Officers and Medical Officers; distribution of  Sexual  Assault Evidence  Collection (SAEC)  Kits  to States/  UTs; establishment of state of the art DNA Laboratory at CFSL, Chandigarh; assistance to 24 States/ UTs to strengthen Forensic Science Laboratories; setting up of 1023 Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) for speedy disposal of cases of rape and cases under POCSO Act; setting up/ strengthening of Anti Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs) in all districts of the country; setting up/ strengthening of Women Help Desks (WHDs) at Police Stations etc.  The  Government has also put in  place Investigation  Tracking  System for  Sexual Offences, an online analytic tool for tracking and monitoring of investigation. A National Database on Sexual Offenders (NDSO) has also been created.

Under Nirbhaya Fund, Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) has  also  undertaken  several  initiatives,  which,  inter-alia  includes  training  and  skill development  programs  for  Investigation  Officers,  Prosecution  Officers  and  Medical Officers,  distribution  of  Sexual  Assault  Evidence  Collection  (SAEC)  Kits  to  States/ UTs.  BPR&D has also prepared Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) for 'Women Help Desk at Police Stations' to ensure smooth functioning of Women Help Desks by focusing  on  four  critical  components  viz.  infrastructure,  training,  human  resource development and response mechanism.  A book titled 'Women's Safety and Security- a Handbook for First Responders and Investigators in the Police' has also been prepared for  the  purpose  of  prevention  and  investigation  of  crime  against  women  with  specific reference to the crime of sexual assault, which includes investigation, victim compensation and rehabilitation.  Emphasis has been laid upon appropriate behavioural and attitudinal skills of the police in course of prevention and detection of crime against women and children and interaction with victims of crime.  Webinars on women safety with sensitivity, gender sensitization of police personnel etc. have also been organized by BPR&D.

Ministry of Women and Child Development has engaged the services of National Institute  of  Mental  Health  and  Neuro  Sciences  (NIMHANS)  for  providing   basic  and advanced training under the project named 'Stree Manoraksha' to the staff of One Stop Centres (OSCs) across the country on  handling psycho-social and mental health care needs to support the women facing violence and women in distress.

In  addition,  Ministry  of  Women  and  Child  Development  and  Ministry  of  Home Affairs  have  issued  advisories  to  States/  UTs  from  time  to  time  on  various  issues pertaining to safety and security of women and children.

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## Annexure

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) & (b) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 469 DUE FOR ANSWER ON 09.12.2022 REGARDING SEXUAL ASSAULTS AGAINST WOMEN

## Number of  Crime against Women (IPC+SLL) as per data reported by National Crime Records Bureau

| Sl. No.             | State/UT                     | 2019   | 2020   | 2021   |
|---------------------|------------------------------|--------|--------|--------|
| STATES:             | STATES:                      |        |        |        |
| 1                   | Andhra Pradesh               | 17746  | 17089  | 17752  |
| 2                   | Arunachal Pradesh            | 317    | 281    | 366    |
| 3                   | Assam                        | 30025  | 26352  | 29046  |
| 4                   | Bihar                        | 18587  | 15359  | 17950  |
| 5                   | Chhattisgarh                 | 7689   | 7385   | 7344   |
| 6                   | Goa                          | 329    | 219    | 224    |
| 7                   | Gujarat                      | 8799   | 8028   | 7348   |
| 8                   | Haryana                      | 14683  | 13000  | 16658  |
| 9                   | Himachal Pradesh             | 1636   | 1614   | 1599   |
| 10                  | Jharkhand                    | 8760   | 7630   | 8110   |
| 11                  | Karnataka                    | 13828  | 12680  | 14468  |
| 12                  | Kerala                       | 11462  | 10139  | 13539  |
| 13                  | Madhya Pradesh               | 27560  | 25640  | 30673  |
| 14                  | Maharashtra                  | 37144  | 31954  | 39526  |
| 15                  | Manipur                      | 266    | 247    | 302    |
| 16                  | Meghalaya                    | 558    | 568    | 685    |
| 17                  | Mizoram                      | 170    | 172    | 176    |
| 18                  | Nagaland                     | 43     | 39     | 54     |
| 19                  | Odisha                       | 23183  | 25489  | 31352  |
| 20                  | Punjab                       | 5886   | 4838   | 5662   |
| 21                  | Rajasthan                    | 41550  | 34535  | 40738  |
| 22                  | Sikkim                       | 125    | 140    | 130    |
| 23                  | Tamil Nadu                   | 5934   | 6630   | 8501   |
| 24                  | Telangana                    | 18394  | 17791  | 20865  |
| 25                  | Tripura                      | 1070   | 874    | 807    |
| 26                  | Uttar Pradesh                | 59853  | 49385  | 56083  |
| 27                  | Uttarakhand                  | 2541   | 2846   | 3431   |
| 28                  | West Bengal                  | 29859  | 36439  | 35884  |
| TOTAL STATE(S)      | TOTAL STATE(S)               | 387997 | 357363 | 409273 |
| UNION TERRITORIES : | UNION TERRITORIES :          |        |        |        |
| 29                  | A&N Islands                  | 135    | 143    | 169    |
| 30                  | Chandigarh                   | 515    | 301    | 343    |
| 31                  | D&N Haveli and Daman & Diu @ | 82 +   | 61     | 99     |
| 32                  | Delhi                        | 13395  | 10093  | 14277  |
| 33                  | Jammu & Kashmir @            | 3069 * | 3405   | 3937   |
| 34                  | Ladakh @                     | -      | 9      | 18     |
| 35                  | Lakshadweep                  | 38     | 15     | 9      |
| 36                  | Puducherry                   | 95     | 113    | 153    |
| TOTAL UT(S)         | TOTAL UT(S)                  | 17329  | 14140  | 19005  |
| TOTAL               | ALL INDIA                    | 405326 | 371503 | 428278 |