BHUBANESWAR: Odisha which figures among the top five states of the country in terms of crimes against women reported the highest incidence of assault on women for outraging modesty last year, the latest report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) says.
The Crime in India Report which was released on Monday revealed that the State registered a whopping 14,853 cases of outraging modesty. States like Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan followed with 10,568, 9,393 and 9,079 cases respectively.
According to NCRB data, about 14,891 women faced assault with intent to outrage modesty last year and the crime rate stood at 65.3, which is much more than other States and Union Territories. The NCRB report also put the State in fifth place in terms of total crimes against women under IPC and Special and Local Laws (SLL).
Uttar Pradesh remained at the top with 56,083 cases, Rajasthan (40,738), Maharashtra (39,526) and West Bengal (35,884) while Odisha reported 31,352 incidents.
While the government has made safety and security of women its top agenda, the fear of law for criminals seems to be on the wane as would the ring numbers of crimes suggested in the last three years. Odisha had reported 23,183 incidents of crimes against women in 2019, followed by 25,489 in 2020 which also was a Covid pandemic year.
The State also earned the dubious distinction of reporting the maximum incidents of cyber crimes against women last year. As many as 565 women became victims of cyber crimes in the State, followed by 458 in Assam and 276 in Uttar Pradesh, revealed the report.
Crimes against women surge in Odisha
While the crimes against women saw a surge, the conviction rate remained paltry. As per the NCRB data, the overall conviction rate in crimes against women stood at 8.3 per cent in 2021. The trial could be completed in 2,313 cases last year and only 193 cases ended in conviction.
The State recorded the fifth highest number of IPC crimes against women in 2021. After Uttar Pradesh (44,230), Rajasthan (40,056), West Bengal (33,247) and Maharashtra (33,182), Odisha registered as many as 27,792 cases under IPC. In the dowry deaths category, Odisha stood sixth with 293 cases and was behind Rajasthan, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.