Bhubaneswar: Odisha has registered 1,865 rape cases including sexual assault on 956 minor girls, 7,706 molestation incidents and 337 dowry death cases during the first nine months of 2019, the assembly was informed on Monday.
The state government, however, said the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data putting Odisha at the top of molestation and fourth in dowry death cases in the country are not correct.
"The state has registered 1,865 rape cases which include 956 minor girls by end of September 30, 2019," Minister of State for Home, D S Mishra, said while replying to questions in the Assembly.
Of the total 1865 rape cases registered till September 30, the victims were killed in six incidents, Mishra said.
"Steps were taken to provide relief to the rape survivors... They were also provided counselling by government agencies," the minister said.
A datasheet presented by the minister in the Assembly indicated that minor girl rape cases have been increasing in the state. While 1,212 minor rape cases were reported in 2015, it was 1,204 in 2016. The year 2017 reported 1,283 minor rape cases which increased to 1,430 the next year, the datasheet revealed.
About the number of total rape cases, it said 2,286 rape cases were registered in 2015, 2,144 in 2016, 2,221 in 2017 and 2,502 in 2018. Till September 30, 2019, the state has registered 1,865 rape cases, it said.
The datasheet also revealed that while 13 rape and murder cases were registered in 2015, it was 18 each in 2016 and 2017. At least 15 rape and murder cases were reported in 2018 and six such crimes had been reported during the first nine months of 2019.
To a question, Mishra said Odisha did not top the list of molestation cases in the country as reported by the NCRB.
Similarly, Odisha does not figure in the fourth place in dowry death cases as claimed by the NCRB, he said.
The minister said, while 10,019 cases of molestation were reported in 2018, it was 7,706 cases till September 30, 2019.
About dowry deaths, Mishra said, the state registered 501 cases in 2018 and 337 cases till September 30, 2019.
The minister said steps were being taken by the state government for the safety and security of the women and young girls in the state.