Juvenile crime cases rise by 2.7 pc in 2023; Delhi tops with highest rate: NCRB

New Delhi: A total of 31,365 cases were registered in the country against juveniles in 2023, marking a 2.7-per cent rise over 2022, with Delhi recording the highest crime rate at 41 per one-lakh children, according to the latest NCRB report.

Nationwide, the crime rate of juveniles increased from 6.9 in 2022 to 7.1 in 2023, according to the data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).

The report also said a total of 40,036 juveniles were apprehended in 31,365 cases, including 34,674 under cases of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and 5,362 under Special and Local Laws (SLL) cases, in 2023.

"Majority of juveniles in conflict with law apprehended under IPC and SLL crimes were in the age group of 16 years to 18 years (79 per cent) (31,610 out of 40,036) during 2023," the report said.

According to the report, several states showed a decline.

Madhya Pradesh, which led in absolute numbers with 3,619 cases in 2023 (down from 3,795 in 2022), and Maharashtra with 3,970 cases (down from 4,406) saw reductions.

However, Bihar reported a sharp jump from 1,052 to 1,818 cases and the number of cases in Tamil Nadu increased from 2,607 to 2,999.

Among the Union territories, Delhi accounted for the bulk at 2,278 cases, down from 2,340 in 2022 but still dominant.

When adjusted for child population, Delhi emerged as an outlier with a crime rate of 41.1 per one-lakh children -- far exceeding the national average of 7.1.

Other high-rate regions include Chandigarh (36.7), Puducherry (27.4), Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (20.3), and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (18.7).

States like Chhattisgarh (17.6) and Haryana (17.3) also rank high, while populous states such as Uttar Pradesh (1.8) and Bihar (3.8) have lower rates despite higher absolute numbers.

Offences affecting the human body totalled 11,967 cases, including 995 murders, 977 rapes and 1,476 attempts to commit murder. Hurt cases were the most common at 5,836, followed by kidnapping and abduction (931) and assaults on women with intent to outrage their modesty (811).

Property crimes dominated the IPC tally, with theft leading at 6,557 cases nationwide, burglary at 2,015 and robbery at 1,030.

Delhi alone saw 903 thefts and 210 robberies.

Other notable categories include 842 offences against public tranquillity, such as rioting (693), and 175 relating to documents and property marks like forgery and fraud.

Overall, states contributed 28,452 cases (a rate of 6.6), while Union territories added 2,913 (a rate of 25.2).