Professional Documents
Culture Documents
EPW
vol L no 9
1 Introduction
SPECIAL ARTICLE
Body crimes
Crimes against
women
Crimes related
to property
Economic crimes
Crimes against
public order
Other IPC crimes
Total IPC crimes
10.5
14.1
14.2
6.8
30.3
17.6
16.1 14.7
5.8
2.1
3.0
6.7
9.8
5.6
36.3
3.3
39.0
6.4
21.5
3.1
38.2
5.2
35.9
11.5
32.9
11.9
49.6 35.1
7.3 6.0
0.8
43.2
100
1.7
36.8
100
0.5
57.8
100
0.2
42.8
100
0.9
11.6
100
2.0
30.0
100
0.9 1.6
22.7 36.9
100 100
3.4
5.7
400.2
397.9
347.2
314.3
Types of Crimes
322.1
300
265.6
200
491.2
422.3
400
180.1
168.8
290.4
310.6
293.9
201012
187.2
200406
100
139.6
74.5
Kolkata
Mumbai
Total Cities
Body crimes
Crimes against
women
Crimes related
to property
Economic crimes
Crimes against
public order
Other IPC crimes
Total IPC crimes
8.5
13.8
16.0
9.9
25.8
16.9
16.5
13.9
8.1
3.8
2.9
9.5
10.7
7.0
4.5
6.7
26.5
2.6
41.5
10.8
16.6
4.7
48.5
5.2
31.4
12.9
20.7
10.8
49.0
8.0
31.7
6.7
0.8
53.5
100
1.4
28.7
100
0.6
59.2
100
0.2
26.6
100
2.5
16.6
100
1.7
42.9
100
1.3
20.6
100
1.7
39.2
100
vol L no 9
EPW
SPECIAL ARTICLE
Figure 2: Crime Rates against Women in the Major Cities (200506 and 201012)
35
30
31.5
29.7
30
26.8
25
25.8
23.3
20.7
20
15
10
201012
15.4
9.9
16.8
9.7
200406
7.6
6.1
4.1
8.3
6.4
0
Ahmedabad Bengaluru
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kolkata
Rape
Kidnapping and abduction
Dowry deaths
Cruelty by husband and relatives
Molestation
Eve-teasing
Importation of girls
Total
200506
200809
201112
8.3
14.0
1.6
22.2
9.7
2.5
0.0
58.2
5.6
16.3
1.5
17.5
7.3
1.7
0.0
49.8
6.9
22.9
1.4
22.3
7.9
2.2
0.0
63.6
Up to
10 Years
(%)
1014
Years
(%)
1518
Years
(%)
Above
1830
(%)
3150
Years
(%)
200406 Delhi
All-India
201012 Delhi
All-India
9.9
7.5
10.3
7.3
18.4
12.4
14.8
9.9
21.6
22.9
33.5
29.2
47.1
46.8
33.9
42.6
2.8
9.9
7.0
10.5
EPW
vol L no 9
Above 50 Total
Years
Cases
(%)
(Number)
0.3
0.4
0.6
0.6
519
1,639
484
2,483
89
SPECIAL ARTICLE
Figure 3: Crime Rates against Children in Major Cities (200406 and 201012)
25
22.3
20
15
201012
10
200406
5
2.7
2.3
2.5
0.1
2.2
0.5
1.3
1.3
1
5.2
3.3
2.8
1.9
Children are particularly vulnerable to crime and abuse. There in Delhi increased significantly from 4.5 per 1,00,000 in 200406
is gross under-reporting of crimes against children such as to 18.3 per 1,00,000 in 201012, and remained the principal crime
trafficking, infanticide and rape; official data constitute a minus- against children. This is keeping in view that some crimes against
cule of the total crimes/violence committed against children children such as foeticide, infanticide, abetment of suicide, and
(Government of India 2007). In Delhi, on an average, 14 children procurement of minor girls are known to be under-reported, while
are reported missing daily according to the Crime in Delhi Report buying and selling of girls for prostitution may be incorrectly
(Delhi Police 2012). The Delhi Police reports several incidents of recorded under kidnappings and abduction (Tables 8 and 9).
Further analysis of the victims of kidnapping reveals that
children running away from their homes and the one principal
reason cited is the desire to escape the intolerable conditions those below 18 years constituted a significant proportion of
in their homes. A survey conducted by the Institute for Human those kidnapped in 200406, and this share increased subDevelopment and Save the Children among 50,000 children stantially in 201012, from 53% to over 90%, between the two
and a further in-depth study of 1,009 children revealed many time points. Moreover, an essential reading from these figures
crucial findings. A quarter of the respondents who reported is the age- and sex-wise variation of this particular crime.
having run away from their homes actu- Table 8: Three-year Average of Category-wise IPC Crime Rates against Children in Major Cities
ally lived alone, and a majority of them during 200406
Crime Category
Ahmedabad Bengaluru Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad Kolkata Mumbai Total Cities
continued to do so to escape abuse at
Murder
0.1
0.0
0.1
0.3
0.1
0.0
0.1
0.1
home or were victims of kidnapping or Infanticide
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
trafficking, or had lost contact with their Other murders
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
families; a significant proportion of chil- Rape
0.2
0.1
0.2
1.9
0.5
0.1
0.5
0.6
0.3
0.1
0.1
4.5
0.5
0.3
0.2
1.1
dren reported verbal and physical abuse Kidnapping and abduction
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
(Institute for Human Development and Foeticide
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Save the Children 2011). This is clearly in- Abetment of suicide
Exposure and abandonment
0.5
0.0
0.0
0.3
0.9
0.0
0.0
0.2
dicative of the inability of the caregivers as
Procurement of minor girls
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.1
0.0
0.0
well as the state to provide for children and Buying of girls for prostitution
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
protect them from violence and abuse.
Selling of girls for prostitution
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Rate of Crimes against Children
Other crimes
Total
1.6
2.7
0.0
0.1
0.0
0.5
1.9
9.0
0.0
2.2
0.4
1.0
1.0
1.9
1.2
3.3
Table 9: Three-year Average of Category-wise IPC Crime Rates against Children in Major Cities
during 201012
Crime Category
Murder
Infanticide
Other murders
Rape
Kidnapping and abduction
Foeticide
Abetment of suicide
Exposure and abandonment
Procurement of minor girls
Buying of girls for prostitution
Selling of girls for prostitution
Other crimes
Total
Ahmedabad Bengaluru
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.1
1.9
0.0
0.0
0.3
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
2.3
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.2
1.6
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.0
0.0
0.3
2.5
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kolkata
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.5
0.5
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
1.0
0.2
0.0
0.0
1.9
18.3
0.0
0.0
0.4
0.0
0.0
0.0
1.5
22.3
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.3
0.4
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.4
1.3
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.2
0.6
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.0
0.1
0.3
1.3
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.8
0.7
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.0
1.1
2.8
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.5
3.1
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.0
1.3
5.2
vol L no 9
EPW
SPECIAL ARTICLE
Among those below 10 years, the propor- Table 10: Age- and Sex-wise Composition of Victims of Kidnappings and Abductions in Delhi and India
Total Number
Up to 10 Years
1015 Years
1518 Years
Above 18 Years
Total
tion of male children is found to be higher Year
of Cases
(%)
(%)
(%)
(%)
(%)
than that of female children, while the
Reported
Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Total
Total
Men Women
older age groups (1518 years) comprised
1,414
8.0
5.9
6.1 11.5 3.5 18.0 15.5
31.4 30.7 66.9
a larger proportion of females. In 2004 2004-06 Delhi
All-India
23,383
1.2 0.9
1.2
3.8 1.3 10.2 27.3
54.1 31.0 69.0
06, the percentage of male children be2010-12 Delhi
3,648
9.9 4.8 23.2 18.0 11.3 26.0 2.9
4.0 47.2 52.8
low the age of 15 years was 14%, while in
All-India
43,565
1.6
1.1
2.9
6.5 2.1 21.7 15.2 48.9 21.8 78.2
201012 it increased significantly to 38%, Source: Authors calculations using NCRB data.
female children in the same age group in Table 11: Composition of IPC Crime against Children within Major Cities Based on a Three-year Average
(%)
200406 constituted 17.4% and increased during 200406
Ahmedabad Bengaluru Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad Kolkata Mumbai Total Cities
to 22.8% of those kidnapped. Among Crime Category
Murder
4.8
6.1
2.9
4.4
11.1
2.9
11.1
4.3
those between the ages of 15 and 18 years,
Infanticide
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.1
males constituted 3.5% in 200406 and
Other murders
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
increased to over 11% in 201012, while Rape
4.8
28.3
13.7
22.2
26.8
19.7
26.8
19.3
females constituted 18% in 200406 and Kidnapping and abduction
23.6
30.3
22.7
50.0
37.9
46.4
37.9
29.3
increased to over a quarter in 201012. It Foeticide
0.0
0.0
1.4
0.7
0.0
0.3
0.0
0.6
is clear that the kidnapping rates for Abetment of suicide
0.0
0.5
0.2
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.0
0.2
younger males and females are much Exposure and abandonment
51.5
0.0
3.5
4.7
18.3
1.3
18.3
7.3
5.5
5.6
2.2
0.0
3.3
0.5
3.3
0.7
higher in Delhi when compared to the Procurement of minor girls
0.0
1.5
0.2
0.0
0.0
0.4
0.0
0.6
national figures. This trend reverses for Buying of girls for prostitution
1.2
3.0
0.4
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.0
0.2
male and female adults (over 18 years). Selling of girls for prostitution
29.1
24.7
52.8
18.0
2.6
28.2
2.6
37.5
This could be indicative of the presence Other crimes
Total
100.0
100.0
100.0 100.0
100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
of child trafficking in the capital and Source: Authors calculations using NCRB data.
needs urgent legal and policy attention
Table 12: Composition of IPC Crime against Children within Major Cities Based on a Three-year
(Table 10).
Average during 201012
(%)
From 2004 to 2006, kidnappings and Crime Category
Ahmedabad Bengaluru Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad Kolkata Mumbai Total Cities
0.0
3.6
8.2
0.9
3.1
0.6
2.9
2.4
abductions constituted 50% of the crimes Murder
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.8
0.0
0.2
0.2
against children in Delhi, while from Infanticide
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
2010 to 2012, they increased to 82.1%. Other murders
Rape
6.3
8.3
46.3
8.4
22.1
12.1
27.0
9.2
The share of kidnappings is high across
Kidnapping and abduction
81.1
66.9
44.7
82.1
27.5
48.6
26.3
59.4
cities like Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai
Foeticide
0.0
0.3
0.0
0.1
1.9
0.0
0.3
0.4
and Kolkata.
Abetment of suicide
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
1.6
0.4
0.3
0.2
It is thus clear from the official data that Exposure and abandonment
12.1
2.8
0.0
1.6
8.1
0.0
4.3
2.8
the crime rates against children in Delhi Procurement of minor girls
0.2
7.8
0.0
0.1
0.0
9.0
0.1
0.9
are among the highest, with rape and kid- Buying of girls for prostitution
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.6
0.1
0.2
nappings being alarmingly high. These are Selling of girls for prostitution
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.1
0.4
4.8
0.0
0.2
crucial issues for the government, police, Other crimes
0.2
10.4
0.8
6.7
34.5
24.0
38.7
24.1
100.0
100.0
100.0 100.0
100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
law and social policy. Children need to be Total
afforded the highest priority, especially in Source: Authors calculations using NCRB data.
Table 13: Ranking of Different Cognisable Crimes in Delhi in 2011 and 2012
terms of physical security (Tables 11 and 12).
Rank
EPW
vol L no 9
2011
2012
26
21
2
31
16
NA
Table 14: Delhi Status of Police and Court Cases Dealing with General IPC
Crimes (2005 to 2012)
Years
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
56.3
53.7
48.1
55.2
52.6
50.0
55.0
70.4
43.7
46.3
51.9
44.8
47.4
50.0
45.0
42.1
Conviction
Pendency
8.9
9.6
9.7
5.8
5.4
4.6
5.3
7.1
5.5
5.1
5.3
3.1
3.9
4.3
5.7
6.2
85.6
85.3
85.0
91.1
90.7
91.1
88.9
86.7
91
SPECIAL ARTICLE
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
68.7
91.8
84.2
87.6
87.7
86.0
77.2
69.8
31.3
8.2
15.8
12.4
12.3
14.0
22.8
30.2
Conviction
Pendency
7.2
8.2
9.1
6.8
10.2
7.8
9.9
14.8
38.3
24.5
23.8
15.5
11.4
14.6
13.9
15.2
54.5
67.3
67.1
77.6
78.4
77.6
76.3
70.0
This section uses the data set of the Perceptions Survey conducted by the Institute for Human Development, New Delhi
for the Delhi Human Development Report, 2013.9 While the
survey collected information on a wide range of issues, the
focus of this section is on information relating to various
aspects of crime and safety of the population, in general, and
of women, in particular. The broad areas of inquiry included:
(i) rating Delhi in terms of personal safety,
(ii) how safe/secure people felt living in their localities,
(iii) rating the security of women and girls in the city in three
spaces apart from their homes, viz, the localities in which
they resided, public transport and at the workplace,
(iv) perceptions of crime levels during the last three years,
92
vol L no 9
EPW
SPECIAL ARTICLE
EPW
vol L no 9
11.0
80
39.3
Do not know/
Cannot say
Insecure and
very insecure
4.2
48.6
32.3
60
40
1.7
21.1
26.4
Sometimes
secure
34.4
20
23.3
44.9
Very secure
and secure
12.9
0
Workplace
Public transport
Own locality
SPECIAL ARTICLE
vulnerable. Lack of street lighting and dark areas were perceived as unsafe. Incidents of chain snatching and sexual harassment were reportedly common near alcohol shops and
parks. In August 2012, a survey conducted by the Delhi Police
revealed over 1,500 areas in the city including areas near colleges, schools, residential areas and metro stations that were
unlit and perceived as being unsafe (Anand 2012). In one
FGD,16 women reported, Parks in the vicinity are unsafe as
groups of men can be seen gambling. Stray incidents of chain
snatching, especially by boys on motorbikes are common. In
another FGD,17 women said, The railway fatak (level crossing)
area is very dangerous. That is where the boys hang out. Girls
have to cross that area to reach their school and these boys
harass them. The need for more police presence and patrolling
at night was highlighted.
Less than 25% of the respondents felt that the workplace was a
secure space for women, with not too much difference between
male and female respondents. This may be reflective of the
gender biases and fear that prevails in big cities like Delhi which
affect womens mobility and participation in the workforce.
Disaggregated by religious groups, the data reveals that respondents from minority communities (Muslims and Sikhs) felt
that the workspace was less secure for women vis--vis Hindus,
which could also be reflective of the general sense of insecurity
they might feel which gets projected at the workplace as well.
In terms of safety while using public transport, only 13%
thought that public transport was very secure or secure for
women. This perception emerged quite clearly in the FGDs too.
Women felt that buses were the worst in terms of safety, and
reported being regularly harassed. Additionally, perceptions
regarding the safety of public transport for women decreased
with increasing education levels, which could be potentially
associated with increasing understanding of their rights and
decreasing tolerance towards such behaviour.
5.4 Perceptions about the Incidence of Crime over Time
16
12
17.3
8.8
10.8
17.5
11.3
8.7
6.2
6.1
2.8
North
North
North
West
East
Source: Perceptions Survey, 2013.
East
West
South
West
South
vol L no 9
EPW
SPECIAL ARTICLE
Physical and emotional harassment by the police was also reported among the poor settlements. It emerges that religious
minorities are the least satisfied with the promptness in which
the police responds, with 35.9% Muslim respondents and
34.8% Sikh respondents reporting being dissatisfied or very
dissatisfied as compared to the all-Delhi average of 32.5%.
Respondents belonging to the high-income category reported
being the most dissatisfied with the police response in terms
of promptness (39.1% reported being dissatisfied and another 11.2% reported being very dissatisfied).
When the respondents Figure 9: Peoples Ratings about the
the Police
were probed about the Approachability ofVery
satisfied
Do not know
1%
19%
approachability of the poVery
Satisfied
21%
lice, a little less than a dissatisfied
7%
quarter of the respondents
were satisfied with their interactions while 19% chose
not to reply (Figure 9). In
the FGDs, the respondents
voiced the need for a larger
police force, especially more
female police personnel
Dissatisfied
and for the police to treat
Neither satisfied
25%
nor dissatisfied
citizens better.
26%
In response to the ques- Source: Perceptions Survey, 2013.
tion as to the two most important measures that were needed
to enhance safety and security in the city, the respondents to
the Perceptions Survey offered some useful suggestions, such
as increase in police patrolling coupled with immediate action
against any crime, implementation of stricter laws for safety
for all, and improvements in police behaviour.
Discussions were held with police officers during the course
of the Perceptions Survey 2013 to obtain their perceptions and
the challenges and difficulties they face while performing
their duties. Respondents felt that they and the nature of their
work were not understood by the public. A female police
officer said, After the December 2012 gang rape case, women
officers (have to) report for duty at night. Sometimes when we
do not answer the phone the first time, people complain. It is
not easy. They mentioned the shortage of police staff; in India, there is one police officer per 761 common citizens as compared to the ideal ratio of one police officer per 568 people
(Bureau of Police Research and Development as cited by
Mohan 2012 and DNA 2013). This is in stark contrast to the
number of police officials available for the VIPs (three officials
for one VIP). Delhi has 448 police officers per 1,00,000
persons (Mohan 2012) as compared to the ideal ratio of 176
per 1,00,000 persons and the ideal figure recommended by
the United Nations of 222 police officials for 1,00,000 persons
(DNA 2013). The interviews particularly threw light on the
difficult conditions of work of police officers. Problems in
their workspaces were also discussed. A male officer said,
There is no basic infrastructure here in the police stations,
there is no regular water and the toilets are not cleaned. We
cant go home. People expect us to do so much, but look at the
way we function The discussion revealed poor morale
Economic & Political Weekly
EPW
vol L no 9
SPECIAL ARTICLE
women experienced a fear of public spaces and potential sexual harassment on a daily basis. Perceptions regarding the
police were mostly negative and there was a widespread understanding that a responsive police is the need of the hour.
Comparing these empirical findings with the NCRB data
reveals some gaps and consistencies. Although in terms of
recorded crimes against women, Delhi does not emerge as the
most unsafe city, as it is perceived to be by people and the media, in terms of crimes against children, the fears and perceptions remain consistent with the NCRB data. However, the urgent issue of safety of children has not received enough media
and policy attention. Delhi has reported the highest crimes
against children, particularly kidnappings, much of which is a
result of trafficking, given that Delhi is considered a trafficking hub. The role of the media could be essential in terms of
spreading awareness and prioritising this issue as deserving
immediate legal and policy attention. The role of the media18
too needs to be assessed in the context of crimes against
women, which have been its singular focus in terms of crimes
and appears to have instilled constant fear and paranoia.19
This not only stigmatises certain areas and people, it also restricts social mobility of women and girls causing them to drop
out of school and work (Wasif 2011). This is not to say that the
role of the media in spreading awareness is not appreciated,
but responsible rather than sensational reporting could go a
long way in creating a social atmosphere to empower and deal
with violence against women. Much more space and priority
Edited by
SATISH DESHPANDE
Caste is one of the oldest concerns of the social sciences in India that continues to be relevant even today.
The general perception about caste is that it was an outdated concept until it was revived by colonial policies and
promoted by vested interests and electoral politics after independence. This hegemonic perception changed irrevocably
in the 1990s after the controversial reservations for the Other Backward Classes recommended by the Mandal Commission,
revealing it to be a belief of only a privileged upper caste minority for the vast majority of Indians caste continued
to be a crucial determinant of life opportunities.
This volume collects significant writings spanning seven decades, three generations and several disciplines, and discusses
Pp xi + 425
Rs 595 established perspectives in relation to emergent concerns, disciplinary responses ranging from sociology to law, the
ISBN 978-81-250-5501-3 relationship between caste and class, the interplay between caste and politics, old and new challenges in law and policy,
2014
Authors: Satish Deshpande Irawati Karve M N Srinivas Dipankar Gupta Andr Bteille Rajni Kothari Kumkum Roy Sukhadeo Thorat
Katherine S Newman Marc Galanter Sundar Sarukkai Gopal Guru D L Sheth Anand Chakravarti Carol Upadhya Ashwini Deshpande
Meena Gopal Baldev Raj Nayar Gail Omvedt Mohan Ram I P Desai K Balagopal Sudha Pai Anand Teltumbde Surinder S Jodhka
Ghanshyam Shah Susie Tharu M Madhava Prasad Rekha Pappu K Satyanarayana Padmanabh Samarendra Mary E John Uma Chakravarti
Prem Chowdhry V Geetha Sharmila Rege S Anandhi J Jeyaranjan Rajan Krishnan Rekha Raj Kancha Ilaiah Aditya Nigam M S S Pandian
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SPECIAL ARTICLE
Notes
vol L no 9
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References
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