Over 1,000 cases of cruelty against children in child care institutions in last 3 years: Smriti Irani tells Rajya Sabha

Among all states, Rajasthan, Kerala and Gujarat topped the list, Union Minister of Women and Child Development Smriti Irani said.

New Delhi: As many as 1,010 cases of mental or physical cruelty against children in childcare institutions have been reported in the last three years, the government said in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.

Among these, 412 cases were reported in 2019, 322 incidents in 2020 and 276 cases in 2021. The government citing the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) data presented these facts. Among all states, Rajasthan reported a maximum number of 246 cases in the last three years. The state accounted for 80 cases in 2019, 100 in 2020, and 66 in 2021 respectively. According to data, 191 such cases took place in Kerala. As many as 52 cases were reported in 2019, 65 in 2020, and 74 in 2021. Gujarat accounted for 180 cases with the state registering 91 cases in 2019, 50 in 2020 and 39 in 2021 respectively.

This information came in as a written response from Union Minister of Women and Child Development Smriti Irani who was replying to a question from RJD MP Prof Manoj Kumar Jha enquiring about incidents of mental or physical cruelty against children in childcare institutions in the last three years and the number of arrested people in such cases.

On a query, if the government conducts regular inspections to ensure the safety of children in childcare institutions and its details, Irani provided information which said 4,268 inspections have been done in the last three years. As many as 597 inspections were carried out in Maharashtra, which was followed by 415 in Tamil Nadu, 394 in Rajasthan and 264 in Punjab.