NCRB stats confirm Delhi's reputation as 'rape capital', show major rise in cases in Mumbai

While Delhi has been known its high incidence of crimes against women, recently-released statistics from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) confirm its reputation. The data shows that the number of reported rape cases per lakh citizens is by far the highest in Delhi as compared to other cities in 2014.

While Delhi reported 1,813 rape cases per one lakh members of the population, the figure for Mumbai was 607 cases. According to the statistics, among the four metros, Kolkata is the safest city on this front, with 36 cases reported. A link to the section of the NCRB report which mentions this observation is available here .

The Times of India reported that Mumbai recorded a 55 percent increase in cases of rape and a 67 percent rise in molestation cases from the previous year. This was significantly higher than the overall increase in crimes in Mumbai, which was 16 percent.

However, the report quoted Mumbai Commissioner of Police Rakesh Maria as saying that the increase could be attributed to instructions given to the police to register all cases that are brought before them.

The statistics also lend support to the oft-repeated statement that in most cases of rape, the perpetrators are known persons. In as many as 86 percent of the cases across the country, the offenders were known to the survivors. Shockingly, in Himachal Pradesh, this figure is 100 percent, while in Odisha, it is 99.9 percent. An NCRB table showing these percentages is available here .

After outrage over the December 2012 gangrape in Delhi, the government introduced a new bill allowing for minors to be tried as adults in serious crimes. However, recent statistics show that the percentage of crimes committed by minors is a mere 1.2 percent of the total cognisable crimes, as seen in this table . Further, out of the crimes in which juveniles have been involved, instances of rape constitute only 5.93 percent.