Odisha Tops Crime Charts: Alarming Rise in Cases Against Women and Children in 2023

Odisha led the nation in 2023 with 1,978 reported cases of assault on women intending to disrobe. The state also recorded high incidences of crimes against women's modesty and led in disproportionate asset cases. Overall, crime cases in Odisha rose significantly compared to the previous year.

In a troubling development, Odisha reported the highest number of cases involving the assault or use of criminal force on women with intent to disrobe in 2023, with 1,978 cases documented under IPC Section 354B. This puts Odisha ahead of Uttar Pradesh, which recorded 1,750 such incidents, according to the latest report by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).

Furthermore, Odisha also ranked second-highest in cases of assault on women aiming to outrage their modesty, trailing only behind Rajasthan. The latter reported 6,758 cases under Section 354 of the IPC, whereas Odisha documented 5,937 such incidents, as per NCRB data.

Notably, when assessing crime rate per lakh population, Odisha again topped the list with a rate of 25.8 percent, closely followed by Rajasthan at 17.1 percent. The report highlighted an increase in the total number of crime cases registered nationwide to 1,99,954 in 2023 from 1,78,190 in 2022.

The report also shed light on crimes against women, which rose to 25,914 in 2023 from 23,648 cases the previous year, and offenses against children, which increased from 8,240 to 8,577. Despite leading in disproportionate asset cases with 85 reports, Odisha saw a decrease in murder and rape cases, with figures falling from 1,379 and 1,464 in 2022 to 1,362 and 1,195, respectively, in 2023.

Overall, the total number of cognizable IPC crime cases grew to 1,70,022 in 2023, up from 1,43,414 in 2022, according to the NCRB report.

(With inputs from agencies.)