DAMODARAM SANJIVAYYA NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY

VISAKHAPATNAM, A.P., INDIA

PROJECT TITLE

A PROJECT REPORT ON CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN

SUBJECT

SOCIOLOGY

NAME OF THE FACULTY

M. LAKSHMIPATHI RAJU

Name of the Candidate

[Link]

Roll No.
2018LLB120

SEMESTER 1
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to my teacher [Link] Raju

sir who gave me the golden opportunity to do this wonderful project on the topic of (A
Project report on Crimes against Children.) which also helped me in doing a lot of
Research and I came to know about so many new things I am really thankful to them.
Secondly I would also like to thank my friends who helped me a lot in finalizing this project
within the limited time frame.
CONTENTS

 INTRODUCTION
 CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT
 EFFECTS OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT
 RISK FACTORS FOR CHILD MALTREATMENT
 URBAN POVERTY AND VULNERABILITY OF STREET CHILDREN
 MAGNITUDE OF VULNERABILITY
 CHILD EXPLOITATION
 LACK OF PROTECTION TO THE CHILDREN
 SEX CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN
 OFFENCES DEAKT WITH CHILD ABUSE
 CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT LAWS
 CHALLENGES IN INVESTIGATING CHILD MALTREATMENT CASES
 PREVENTION OF CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN
 CHILD LEGISLATIONS IN INDIA
 POSCO ACT
 CASE LAWS
 TABLES
 CONCLUSION
 BIBLOGRAPHY
 AIM OF THE STUDY/SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY
Aim of our study is to make people understand how Crimes against Children

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Doctrinal

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

Wide
 INTRODUCTION

There is no separate classification of offences against children. Generally, the offences

committed against children or the crimes in which children are the victims are considered as
Crime against Children. Indian penal code and the various protective and preventive `Special
and Local Laws' specifically mention the offences wherein children are known to be victims.

The age of child varies as per the definition given in the concerned Acts and Sections but age
of child has been defined to be below 18 years as per Juvenile Justice Act, 2000. Such offences
are construed as Crimes Against Children for the purpose of analysis in this chapter.

It is also to be borne in mind that the offences that are analysed in this chapter do not form an
exclusive block of offences that are reported in the country. They are included in the IPC/SLL
cases already discussed. The offences mentioned in this chapter have been culled out from
various reported crimes in the country wherein the victims of the offences were children.

The data on crimes against children is compiled through the revised annual returns w.e.f. year
2001. Cumulative totals of crime statistics available on monthly basis were used for this
analysis till 2000. The revised annual returns have additional heads like `murder of children’
and `other unspecified.

The cases in which the children are victimised and abused can be categorised under two broad
sections:
1) Crimes committed against Children which are punishable under Indian Penal Code
2) Crimes committed against Children which are punishable under Special and Local
Specific Sections/Acts under above two categories are as follows:
1). Crimes against children punishable under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) are:
a) Murder (302 IPC)
b) Foeticides (Crime against a foetus) Section 315 & 316 IPC.
c) Infanticides (Crime against new-born child (0 to 1 year) Section 315 IPC.
d) Abetment to Suicide (abetment by other persons for commitment of suicide by
children) Section 305 IPC. 1

1
Section 305 of IPC
 e) Exposure & Abandonment : Section 317 IPC.
f) Kidnapping & Abduction: i) Kidnapping for exporting (Section 360 IPC).
ii) Kidnapping from lawful guardianship .
iii) Kidnapping for ransom
iv) Kidnapping for camel racing etc.
v) Kidnapping for begging.
vi) Kidnapping to compel for marriage IPC).
vii) Kidnapping for slavery etc.
viii) Kidnapping for stealing from its person.2
g) Procuration of minor. Section 366-A IPC.3
h) Selling of girls for prostitution (Section 372 IPC).
i) Buying of girls for prostitution (Section 373 IPC).
j) Rape (Sec. 376 IPC) k) Unnatural Offences (Sec. 377 IPC)

Since ages, children have been victimized by one abuse or the other. It is not wrong to say that
they are a neglected lot. Throughout the history of our society, Children have been bought sold,
enslaved, exploited and killed.
They have been abandoned severely beaten and physically abused. In fact, the more we go in
history we find that the lot of children’s had been hushes, and crueller. Poverty and man
situation have specially led to killing of children.
Since recent crimes even as Delhi convulses over its unending tale of shame and horror, a
National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report shows that crime against women and children
is in fact a national plague, by no means limited to its capital alone. The victimization starts
before the birth of a child itself.
For instance, foeticide, gender determination of foetus and causing miscarriage, it is determines
as a female, then the practice of infanticide or the willful killing of new born babies was widely
accepted among ancient and prehistoric people as a legitimate means of dealing with unwanted
children the same has taken the shape of foeticide with the advent on latest scientific and
technological instruments.
Sexual exploitation is another abuse, which children have faced over the centuries. Out of last
adults would modest them to their appeasement. Poverty and illiteracy has played a great role
in facing children to be exploited in order to earn their meal, a day. Children’s have been used
as slaves and bonded laborers in all societies .

2
Section 360 of IPC
3
366-A IPC
In India, the children coming from the lower strata of society served the mighty and wealthy.
They served, served and died. Although the times have changed and the miseries of children
have been reduced with the help of passage and implementation of certain laws yet their lot as
a whole has not improved much.4
The National Crime Records Bureau of India, indicates rape cases against children in India
have increased by 20 percent in 2012 over [Link] year on increase registered in 2011 over
2010 was even higher at 29.68 percent . However the consequences of crimes against children
increasing in the recent scenario, it is consider to be challenge to law enforcement , how to
combat over such cases in order to make prevention.
Law enforcement should plan the preventive measures. Impact of offences against children on
society: Children are so innocent in nature; this innocence can be misused by others. Especially,
when offences take place it will be shameful, and society hates it.
There is threat in the mind set of society members, which impacts on parents psychologically
as well as social conditions. Because in country like India, normative structure like
socialization where parental conditions play vital role.
People will suffer by the crimes it will also destroy the social conditions in label ling
perspective. Government as implemented various policies and laws in order to protect children
by assuring them some rights, even united nation declaration on children rights becomes
questionable if increasing rate of crime exceeds further.5
Major forms of offenses against children in India: i. Sexual offences: protection of children
from sexual offences act, 2012 deals with sexual offences against children in India, earlier it
was dealt with rape section 375 of Indian penal code.
Offence against children is concerned very seriously all over globally, Even United nation play
vital role in order to make protection of children rights. But scenario of crime rate indicates
there is need to rethink of present law quite often, which are suitable to protect children from
the victimization.
Since ages, children have been victimized by one abuse or the other. It is not wrong to say that
they are a neglected lot. For children there has never been a golden age. Throughout the history
of our society, Children have been bought sold, enslaved, exploited and killed.
Sexual offences are very serious crimes not only physically but also mentally. Sometimes
children are abandoned severely beaten and physically abused. In fact, the more we go in
history we find that the lot of children's had been hushes, and crueller.6

4
Section 373 of IPC
5
Section 377 of IPC
6
Saratoga Centre for Family. “Resources, Myths and Facts of Child Sexual Abuse” (2014). 19 March 2014.
[Link]
Poverty and man situation have specially led to killing of children. Exploitation of children is
another major problem. There is certain law to protect children, constitutional rights, and
offences and its classifications consequences in criminal justice system are discussed.
Regarding highlighted factors present paper attempts to focus on the law related issues,
provisions, preventive factors analyses and rights of child victims are focused.
 Throughout history, children have endured physical violence
 During the industrial, urban and machine ages, exploitation of child labour was
common Mistreating children was considered a family matter
 Crimes against children include maltreatment, sexual exploitation, trafficking and
abduction.
Human rights are moral principles that set out certain standards of human behaviour, and are
regularly protected as legal rights in national and international law.
They are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is
inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus
conceived as universal and egalitarian. The doctrine of human rights has been highly influential
within international law, global and regional institutions, in the policies of states and in the
activities of non-governmental organizations and has become a cornerstone of public policy
around the world. 7
The idea of human rights suggests that, "if the public discourse of peacetime global society can
be said to have a common moral language, it is that of human rights." The strong claims made
by the doctrine of human rights continue to provoke considerable scepticism and debates about
the content, nature and justifications of human rights to this day.
Indeed, the question of what is meant by a "right" is itself controversial and the subject of
continued philosophical debate. Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for
women and girls of many societies worldwide.
In some places, these rights are institutionalized or supported by law, local custom, and
behaviour, whereas in others they may be ignored or suppressed. They differ from broader
notions of human rights through claims of an inherent historical and traditional bias against the
exercise of rights by women and girls in favour of men and boys.
Issues commonly associated with notions of women's rights include, though are not limited to,
the right: to bodily integrity and autonomy; to vote (suffrage); to hold public office; to work;

7
Non-governmental Organisations
to fair wages or equal pay; to own property; to education; to serve in the military or be
conscripted; to enter into legal contracts; and to have marital or parental rights.
Rights also have Child Rights which is for the Protection of Children Right Children's rights
are the human rights of children with particular attention to the rights of special protection and
care afforded to minors, including their right to association with both parents, human identity
as well as the basic needs for food, universal state-paid education, health care and criminal
laws appropriate for the age and development of the child, equal protection of the child's civil
rights, and freedom from discrimination on the basis of the child's race, gender, sexual
orientation, gender identity, national origin, religion, disability, colour, ethnicity, or other
characteristics.
Interpretations of children's rights range from allowing children the capacity for autonomous
action to the enforcement of children being physically, mentally and emotionally free from
abuse, though what constitutes "abuse" is a matter of debate.
Other definitions include the rights to care and nurturing.8

MALTREATMENT OF CHILDREN: NEGLECT AND ABUSE9

Types of Maltreatment:
Maltreatment means to treat roughly or abuse
 Neglect
 Physical abuse
 Emotional abuse
 Sexual abuse

EFFECTS OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT10

RESULTING DAMAGE
 Serious and permanent damage Physical, mental and emotional
 Future violent and criminal behaviour
 Intergenerational transmission of violence

8
Child Rights And Legislation.
9
Maltreatment of Children
10
Effects of child Abuse and Neglect
RISK FACTORS FOR CHILD MALTREATMENT
INCREASED CHANCES
 Children younger than 4 years of age
 Special needs children
 History of child maltreatment in family
 Substance abuse
 Parental characteristics
 Concentrated neighborhood disadvantage

URBAN POVERTY AND VULNERABILITY OF STREET CHILDREN

India the second most populous country in the world with an estimated 400 million children up
to the age of 18 (UNFPA, 2005). Acceleration in economic growth has made India among the
10 fastest growing economies of the world. It ranks 115th among 162 countries according to
Human Development Index.
As per the 2001 census report, the rate of urbanization in India was 28.77 percent. In the past
few decades, urbanization and urban growth have accelerated in many developing countries.
In 1970, 37 percent of the world’s population lived in the cities.
In 1995 this figure was 45 percent, and the proportion was expected to cross 50 percent by
2005 (UN 1995).11
MAGNITUDE OF URBAN POVERTY

There was no consensus on a definition of urban poverty but two broad complementary
approaches were prevalent: economic and anthropological interpretations.
Conventional economic definitions used indicators like income or consumption complemented
by a range of other social indicators such as life expectancy, infant mortality, nutrition, the
proportion of the household budget spent on food, literacy, school enrolment rates, and access
to health clinics or drinking water, to classify poor groups against a common index of material
welfare.

11
UN 1995 Report
Alternative interpretations developed largely by rural anthropologists and social planners
working with rural communities in the third world, it allows for local variation in the earning
of poverty.
 CHILD EXPLOITATION

Using a minor child for profit, power, status, sexual gratification, or some other purpose.
Many individuals taking part in child exploitation do it because there is a large profit to be
made, essentially selling the services of children, or the children themselves, to others. Others
use children to create child pornography, or for personal sexual gratification.
Laws regarding exploitation of children vary by state, and children are protected by federal
laws as well. Penalties for those convicted of child exploitation in any form are severe. This
crime can be divided into two types of exploitation: sexual and economic.

Sexual Exploitation of a Child

Sexual exploitation of a child is defined as the act of employing, using, persuading, inducing,
enticing, or coercing a minor child to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of
producing visual depictions. Actual acts that are considered sexual exploitation of a child
include:
 Indecent touching or exposure of or to a child
 Use of sexually explicit language towards a child
 Involvement of a child in pornography
 Showing a child pornographic material
 Early, forced marriage
 Rape
 Incest
 Sexual slavery

Sexual exploitation of a child also includes transportation of a minor from one state to
another, or to a foreign territory, with the intent of engaging the child in any of the acts listed
above. This type of child abuse often involves an adult abusing his or her position of
authority or trust for sexual purposes.12

Economic Exploitation of a Child.

Economic exploitation of a child, also referred to as “criminal exploitation of a child,” refers

to the use of a child in any way for economic gain. This often includes child labour, child
slavery, child sex tourism, and even the “sale” or illegal adoption of children for profit.

Children are often used to help sell and distribute illegal drugs, and in some war-ridden
countries, children are recruited as soldiers, and forced to fight.13

12
Child exploitation, Rape and Incest
13
Child Welfare Information Gateway, Children’s Bureau. “Recognizing Child Abuse and Neglect: Signs and
Symptoms.“ (April 2006). 19 March 2014. [Link]
 LACK OF PROTECTION TO THE CHILDREN

Experts have struggled to define early childhood violence, abuse and neglect, identify its
causes, and assess its consequences and costs. In recent years, however, research has clarified
the severe consequences of child violence, abuse and neglect, highlighted several risk factors,
and developed new prevention interventions. Past responses focused on preventing a
recurrence of violence, abuse and neglect once it has already taken place, identifying risk
factors for violence, abuse and neglect and addressing the problems and deficiencies of primary
caretakers. Current trends place greater focus on preventing violence, abuse and neglect by
strengthening protective factors and building family and social networks to reinforce the ability
of parents and families to care for their young children.
Context of Violence, Abuse and Neglect in Early Childhood The definition for violence against
children includes the physical, emotional mistreatment, sexual abuse, neglect and negligent
treatment of children as well as exploitation (sexual exploitation and child labour). It is a
complex issue that occurs in many different settings. The factors surrounding child violence,
abuse and neglect as well as effective prevention and response strategies differ according to
the child age, the setting and the relationships between the child victim and the perpetrator.
 SEX CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN

The most important thing in defining child sexual abuse is the experience of the child. It takes
very little for a child’s world to be devastated. A single experience can have a profound
impact on a child’s life. A man sticks his hand in his daughter’s underpants, or strokes his
son’s penis once, and for that child, the world is never the same again.”
The sexual activities may include all forms of oral/genital, genital, or anal contact by or to the
child, or abuse that does not include contact such as exhibitionism, voyeurism, or using the
child in the production of pornography.14

MAGNITUDE OF CRIME
 53% of girl children in India are victims of sexual exploitation in one form or another.
 According to one publication, child sexual abuse is not just atypical of lower income
groups. Amongst the middle and upper class families, one in every four boys and one
in every three girls, below the age of 18, have suffered from sexual abuse.
 50% of the abusers are adults in position of their trust.

EXPLOITATION OF A CHILD
It refers to the use of a child in work or other activities for the benefit of others and to the
detriment of the child’s physical or mental health, development and education.
Exploitation is the abuse of a child where some form of remuneration is involved or whereby
the perpetrators benefit in some manner monetarily, socially or politically etc

EXPLANATION OF THE TERMS USED

 A “juvenile” is a person who has not attained his eighteenth birthday.
 An “offender” is one who gives or causes an offence.
 A “perpetrator” is one who perpetrates or commits an offence or a crime.
 A “transgressor” is one who violates a rule or oversteps a boundary.
 An “accused” is a person charged with an offence and is the defendant in a criminal
case, while a criminal is a person or convicted of a crime.
 A “culprit” is a person or a thing at fault for a problem or a crime.
 A “wrongdoer” is one who commits a wrong, especially morally or ethically.

Child Welfare Information Gateway. “Mandatory Reporters of Child Abuse and Neglect” (August 2012). 19
14

March 2014 [Link]

 CHILD ABUSE

The term includes physical, emotional and sexual abuse and Neglect. Neglect means to not
give enough care or attention to people or things that are your responsibility.
The term is generally used to describe an act of commission outside of accepted cultural norms.
Cultural norms mean the behavioral standards that a society adopts as a whole and follows
when interacting with one another. An abused child is one who has been subjected to physical
or mental neglect or harm.
Acts of omission and commission respectively are things one has failed to do, or has done.

CHILD NEGLECT

It is an act of omission, the failure to provide for the child’s basic needs.
This can include:
 Physical neglect
 Emotional neglect
 Exploitation constitutes a form of coercion and violence, detrimental to a child’s
physical and mental health, development and education.15

AGE OF CONSENT

Age of consent is an age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to

sexual acts, and is thus the minimum age of a person with whom another person is legally
permitted to engage in sexual activity. Age of consent laws vary widely from jurisdiction to
jurisdiction. The age of consent is also called the age of protection.

SEX CRIME

 A crime involving sexual assault or having a sexual motive.

 Sex crimes include rape, child molestation, lewd conduct, possession and distribution
of child pornography or obscene material, prostitution, solicitation for prostitution,
pimping, pandering, indecent exposure, penetration of the genital or anal region by a
foreign object and sexual battery etc.
 Lewd’ means preoccupied with sex and sexual desire, lustful, obscene and indecent.

15
Child Safe of Central Missouri. “Additional Facts about the dynamics of child sexual abuse, Who is at risk for
sexual abuse?” (2014). 19 March 2014. [Link]
  Solicitation’ refers to an act or instance of requesting or seeking bid.

This term was first coined in the 1970s, to characterize a group of experiences common to
women in the workplace and in educational contexts.

OFFENCES DEALT WITH

The definition of child abuse is comprehensive and encompasses the following :

1. Sexual harassment (Sec 11)16 of IPC
2. Sexual assault (Sec 7)17 of IPC 3. 4. Aggravated sexual assault (Sec 9)18 of IPC
5. Aggravated penetrative sexual assault (Sec 5)19 of IPC
6. Use of child for pornographic purposes (Sec 13)20 of IPC
7. Storage of pornographic material (Sec 15)21 of IPC

CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT LAWS

OVERVIEW
 Typically child abuse and neglect laws have three components
 Criminal definitions and penalties Mandate to report suspected cases
 Civil process for removing the child from the abusive or neglectful environment Hess
11-8 C
 FEDERAL LEGISLATION: Courts often determine punishment as reasonable
 STATE LAWS
 Every state has enacted child abuse and neglect laws
 States offer a bit more protection to children
 What is “reasonable” varies from state to state

CASE PROCESSING :
 CHILD WELFARE
 Child protective services (CPS) agencies
 Acts On behalf of a child
 Parents are unable or unwilling to do so
 Provides protective custody
 Formal investigation is required frequently

16
Section 11 of IPC
17
Section 7 of IPC
18
Section 9 of IPC
19
Section 5 of IPC
20
Section 13 of IPC
21
Section 15 of IPC
 CHALLENGES IN INVESTIGATING CHILD MALTREATMENT CASES

PROTECTING THE CHILD

 Possibility of present or continued danger exists
 Child must be removed into protective custody22

NEED TO INVOLVE OTHER AGENCIES

 Traditionally conducted separately
 Multidisciplinary team (MDT) approach23

PREVENTION OF CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN

Preventing Child Violence, Abuse, and Neglect.

The best way to prepare for the future is to create it. Prevention is the process of proactively
cultivating positive cultures, leading to a better future for children and their families. To create
that future we must challenge some of the ways that we view, discuss and fund prevention.
For example, while intervention policies and ways to stop incidents of child abuse and neglect
are critical, such policies are by definition reactive. Prevention must move “upstream” from
the problem and address norms in the culture. This is where we must combine the “spirit” of
being proactive with prevention science to drive best practices.
Prevention can be conceptualized as investing in future outcomes by influencing current
behaviour or conditions. (Stagner & Lansing, 2009).The term "prevention" is typically used to
represent activities that stop an action or behaviour.
It can also be used to define activities that promote a positive action or behaviour. Successful
child violence, abuse and neglect interventions must both reduce risk factors and promote
protective factors to ensure the well-being of children and families.
There is a growing recognition of the importance of community wide efforts to prevent child
violence, abuse and neglect before abuse or neglect occurs by offering a continuum of services
that promote the health of the population as a whole.

22
Protecting Child
23
Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs. “Bureau of Justice Statistics: Child Victimizers: Violent
Offenders and Their Victims. No. 01-1231” (2001). 19 March 2014.
[Link]
 A three tier prevention model helps to define and conceptualize a set of strategic options and
includes:
(i) Universal prevention efforts attempt to influence the attitudes and behaviours of the
population at large. This tier also includes preventive laws, and services readily
available to the whole population;
(ii) Selective or targeted programmes aimed at defined “at-risk” populations and;
(iii) Specific efforts to prevent further violence, abuse and neglect when violence, abuse
and neglect has already been reported.

Each tier has different goals and requires different approaches. Universal and targeted
prevention approaches aim to stem violence, abuse and neglect before it starts by
minimizing identified risk factors for violence, abuse and neglect and maximizing
protective factors.
Many prevention approaches can be applied both universally and to target groups. For
example interventions implemented universally such as those that distribute education
materials and/or operate family support groups can also be implemented with the general
populations as well as with those communities or families at -risk.
Indicated interventions at the third tier serve families where violence, abuse and neglect
have already occurred. Demographic based targeting strategies have been more successful
that others in part because they serve more or less as universal interventions for specific
subpopulations. 24
They lessen the likelihood of stigmatization and more easily facilitate peer networks.
Unlike targeted interventions, universal prevention approaches include laws, and policies,
and educate the general public about the consequences of violence, abuse and neglect of
children and provide information about and access to resources.
Parenting Education.
One of the strategies that has received increasing attention is parent education programmes.
Parent education interventions can be delivered in a wide variety of settings and are
designed to develop positive discipline approaches, increase knowledge of child
development and promote positive parent child interactions.
These programmes have been implemented at community level where the programme is
available to all as well as a more targeted population identified to be at risk. Although some
argue that parent education cannot succeed unless family problems are also addressed,
much evidence suggests that first helping parents to be more effective with their children
can address a range of individual and family risk factors.
The successes of parenting programmes have varied and are dependent on the retention of
the parents and their ability to adopt and implement the positive behaviours to reduce child
violence, abuse and neglect.
In general, effective parent education programmes had explicitly stated measurable
outcomes, were of sufficient length and intensity , had interventions tailored to a family’s
developmental milestones, were based on a strength based model, and demonstrated an

24
Child Safe of Central Missouri. “Additional Facts about the dynamics of child sexual abuse, Who is at risk for
sexual abuse?” (2014). 19 March 2014. [Link]
ecological approach that was sensitive to the influence of neighbourhood and community
contexts.
Evaluations of parent education programmes have shown promising results but few have
directly examined their impact on child violence, abuse and neglect rates. Rather outcomes
have focused on and included parent competence and skills, parent-child conflict and
parental mental health.
Evidence based parent training, are in a period of transformation. Evidence-based methods
are rapidly emerging from a development phase that has primarily involved local and highly
controlled studies into more national implementation and greater engagement with the child
protection .The next step is effectiveness trials.

Centre-based Early Learning Programmes Early Childhood Development

programmes.
Both formal and informal, for preschool children from 3-6 years provide an ideal
opportunity for ensuring positive child development and in strengthening the quality of
families to provide and care for their young children.
While the organization and structure of early learning programmes vary widely, the goal
of quality programmes address all aspects of children’s development (social-emotional,
language, cognitive and physical) and provide a solid foundation for the child’s success in
early primary school.
They are guided and framed by an underlying core set of principles. These include:
Establish a supportive environment for children, families and staff that provide
opportunities to enhance awareness refine skills and increase understanding;
Promote a comprehensive vision of health for children by assuring that basic health and
nutrition needs are met, encourages practices that prevent future illnesses and injuries and
promotes positive and culturally relevant health behaviours;
Provide comprehensive learning opportunities that address all aspects of development
including social, emotional, cognitive and physical growth;
Build a community where adults and children are treated as individuals while at the same
time a sense of belonging to the group is reinforced.
Applying the Strengthening Families approach, early childhood settings provide support to
parents to help them develop positive relationships, increase knowledge of parenting and
child development.
The staff in early childhood care settings receives instruction in interacting with all families
in ways that build protective factors. Services for parents include peer support groups,
lending libraries, sessions, or volunteer projects.
The focus is on protective factors but early childhood staff is also trained to recognize risk
and respond to early warning signs of abuse and neglect. The staff is prepared to carry out
other strategies that strengthen parenting, link families to resources, respond to family
crises, and value parents.
CHILD LEGISLATIONS IN INDIA:
1. Article 15 (3): It empowers the state to make special provisions for women and
children. 73
2. Article 21: It guarantees right to life and personal liberty. 86th Amendment states that
the “Then State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age
of 6 to 14 years in such manner as the state may, by law, determine.”
3. Article 24: It prohibits the employment of the children in factories etc.
4. Article 39 (e) and (f): It obliges the state to safeguard the health of children and afford
opportunities to grow with dignity.
5. Article 45: It provides for free and compulsory education for children. The implicit
provisions dealing with the welfare of children may be mentioned as under.2 1.
6. Article 14: Equality before law.
7. Article 23: Prohibition of Traffic in human beings and forced labour.
8. Article 38: It endeavours to secure a social order for the protection of welfare of the
people.
9. Article 41: Right to work, to education and to public assistance in certain cases
10. Article 42: Provision for just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief.
Article 46: Promotion of educational and economic interests of Scheduled Castes,
Scheduled Tribes and other weaker sections and
11. Article 47: It obliges the state to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living
and to improve the public health.25

To implement the Convention No. 5 of the International Labour Organisation which was
adopted in 1919, the Factories Act was amended in 1922.
By this amendment minimum age limit was increased to 15 years. The scope of the Act was
limited to establishments employing 20 or more persons with mechanical processes. It
prohibited the employment of children below 18 years and women in certain processes.
However, children below the age of 12 years were only prohibited to employment prescribing
an obligatory condition that, for employment such children are required to produce certificate
of age and certificate of fitness from a qualified Medical Practitioner.
In 1923, the Indian Mines Act was passed. This Act prescribed a higher minimum age for
employment in Mines, that is, from 12 to 13 years.
The Factories Act was again amended in 1926. This amendment imposed certain penalties on
the parents and the guardians for allowing their children to work in two separate factories on
the same day. The Indian Ports (Amendment) Act, 1931 provided that 12 years shall be the
minimum age of a person for, handling goods in ports.

25
Articles and Legislation National Conference of State Legislatures. “States’ Mandatory Child Abuse
Reporting Laws: Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting State Statute Overview” (2012). 19 March 2014.
[Link]
POSCO ACT:
The punitive measures arbitrated in the Act are incarceration for variable terms, which may
also include a penalty for reparation because of the derangement that the child had been
subjected to and/or rehabilitation programs in needed.26

A brief description of the POCSO Act:

In today’s perspective such an Act is absolutely necessary and the all – inclusive nature of the
Act makes it more significant. Contrary to the other penal codes, this particular Act has an
exceptional ‘clause’ which states that, an individual accused of sexual offence to children is
guilty unless proven innocent. Besides this clause there are some other dubiousness in the
clauses under this act which may lead to the persecution of innocent individuals but such
dubiety cannot be avoided keeping in mind the basic motive of the Act. Another debatable
mandate of the Act is the compulsory furnishing of a police report by the medical or the child
psychology expert personnel in the event of an intended or actual case of sexual violence to
children. Such reports, if misinterpreted, can have long drawn consequences once again
resulting in the impeachment of innocent victims. This particular mandate overrules the
confidential relation between doctor – patient relations and here the Act explicitly mentions
that, civil or criminal charges shall not be pressed against individuals reporting cases of child
related sexual offence with proper intentions. According to the mandates of the Act, a
defaulter in reporting child sexual abuse, in spite of prior knowledge, is punishable with a
‘penalty or imprisonment up to six months or both’.
A child sexual abuse is acknowledged as more severe if it is perpetrated by an officer of the
law, namely a police officer or a security personnel or a member of the Army or a public
servant or a personnel pertaining to a rehabilitation centre, a remand home, jail, medical
centres or educational institutes. In case of a child sex abuse complaint being lodged with the
Special Juvenile Police Unit or the local police, who is vested with the responsibility of
rendering protection to the victim, POCSO responds immediately with measures for aid and
restitution for the victim of such abuse. POCSO also arranges for special courts for the brisk
habeas corpus against such offenders, while also insulating the victim from any contact with
the impeached during the court hearings. Despite the fact that, both the Central and State
Governments are vested with the responsibility of spreading the awareness about POCSO
using every form of media, and envisaging training programs for all the personnel associated
with POCSO, the Act remains significantly obscure.
Challenges faced by the POCSO Act:
POCSO can become effective only if a police complaint is lodged reporting a child sex abuse
instance. POCSO furnishes particularized instructions about the safeguarding of the victim’s
identity. The Act further construes in minute detail how the statement of such a victim should
be extracted, without causing further trauma to an already deranged child. The act further
defines legal guidelines to be adhered to, in the event of a court hearing, for the said offense.
Still numerous bottlenecks exist in the successful implementation of the Act. The police, for
one, are inept in handling the delicacies involved in such offenses, due to lack of proper
training.

26
POSCO ACT
A child who has been a victim of a sexual assault has probably underwent the most
traumatizing experience of his life which is likely to damage the mental health of the child
irreparably. Under such circumstances, not only the victim but also the family of the victim is
in the imperative need of psychological treatment as well as support on societal issues. But
given the fund starved, rickety infrastructure of the psychosocial services in our country, the
victim and his/her family can expect very little from the government sponsored said services.
Also a successful implementation of the POCSO requires the State Governments to furnish
explicit codes and principles that need to be strictly adhered to by the medical and healthcare
professionals and the other officials involved in the child sex abuse cases, before the trial,
during the trial and also after the trial. But no such concerted efforts have been taken so far.
Whereas the POCSO repeatedly mandates the necessity of extensive training programs for
the police and other legal authorities, handling child sex abuse cases, such programs are
almost non – existent. While the Act also mandates the Government to create maximum and
consistent publicity for POCSO, using the various forms of media in order to spread
awareness regarding the stipulations of the Act, such measures remain stagnated at the
theoretical stage.
With more than 4000 recorded accounts, child sex abuse is a much studied topic pertaining to
researches for the mental and social health of our country. It is, therefore, necessary for
organizations like the Indian Psychiatric Society to be proactive in extending their
cooperation in child sex abuse cases, which can make the Act functional in the true sense.
CASE LAWS:
Vikram Deo Singh Tomar v. State of Bihar, the Supreme Court has taken note of the pitiable
conditions prevailing in care homes maintained by the State of Bihar for women and children
and has directed the State to improve matters in these homes and provide at least the minimum
living conditions ensuring human dignity. The court emphasised that India is a welfare state
and the protection in the Constitution of India lays special emphasis on the protection of the
weaker sections of the society including women and children.27
Unnikrishnan v. State of A.P Article 21A makes the State duty bound to provide free and
compulsory education to all children below the age of fourteen years, incorporating the dictum
delivered by the apex judiciary28
Article 23 speaks of the prohibition of all forms of traffic in human beings and beggar and
other forms of forced labour. Article 24 specifically prohibits employment of children below
the age of 14 years in any factory, mine or in any other hazardous employment. This provision
is incorporated in the Constitution for the safety of the life of children. In Labourers Working
on Sala Hydro Project v. State of J. & K., the court held that construction work is hazardous
employment and children below 14 years cannot be employed in such type of work.29
Article 24 makes it obligatory for the state to protect the economic, social and humanitarian
rights of millions of children working in factories and such other work places.8 But this article
does not prohibit the employment of children in harmless job.
In People’s Union for Democratic Rights v. Union of India, it was contented that
‘Employment of Children Act, 1938’ is not applicable in cases of employment of children in
the construction work of Asiad Projects in Delhi. The apex judiciary, rejecting the contention,
held that the construction work is hazardous employment and therefore no child below the age
of 14 years can be employed in construction work.30
The Supreme Court of India in Mohini Jain v. State of Karnataka, has incorporated the
directive principle in Article 45 into Article 21 so that writ jurisdiction can be invoked for the
enforcement of the same. It was held that the ‘right to education’ being concomitant to the
fundamental right to life, the State is under a constitutional mandate to provide educational
institutions at all levels for the benefit of the children.31

27
Vikram Deo Singh Tomar v. State of Bihar
28
Unnikrishnan v. State of A.P
29
Sala Hydro Project v. State of J. & K
30
People’s Union for Democratic Rights v. Union of India
31
Mohini Jain v. State of Karnataka
 TABLES AND ANALYSIS OF DATA:

Crimes against children in the country and % variation in 2013 over 2012

Sl. Year % Variation

Crime Head in 2013 over

No. 2011 2012 2013 2012

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)

1. Murder 1,451 1,597 1,657 3.8

2. Infanticide 63 81 82 1.2

3. Rape 7,112 8,541 12,363 44.7

4. Kidnapping & Abduction 15,284 18,266 28,167 54.2

5. Foeticide 132 210 221 5.2

6. Abetment of suicide 61 144 215 49.3

7. Exposure & abandonment 700 821 930 13.3

8. Procuration of minor girls 862 809 1,224 51.3

9. Buying of girls for prostitution 27 15 6 -60.0

10. Selling of girls for prostitution 113 108 100 -7.4

Other crimes (including Prohibition of

11. 7,293 7,580 13,259 74.9
Child Marriage Act 2006)

Total 33,098 38,172 58,224 52.5

Crime head wise incidence of crime Figure 6.3
against children during 2009-2013

60000

50000

40000
Incidence

30000
 26

20000

10000

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Year

Kidnapping &
Other Crimes Abduction

Rape Murder

Exposure & Procuration of Minor

Abandonment Girls

Infanticide Foeticide

Selling of Girls for

Prostitution Prohibition of Child Marriage Act
Abetment of Suicide Buying of Girls for Prostitution
 27

CONCLUSION
Crimes against children include:
 Maltreatment (neglect and abuse)
 Sexual exploitation (pornography and prostitution)
 Trafficking and abduction

May be prevented by
 Educating children about potential danger
 Keeping the channels of communication open

There are many crimes against children in the present situation. These crimes are high in East
Asia and Pacific. This led to increase in Crimes and offences against children. Indian
Government enacted many laws to protect child rights. According to UNICEF violence
against child can be ‘Physical and mental abuse and injury, neglect or negligent treatment,
exploitation and sexual abuse. Violence may take place in homes, schools, orphanages and in
places of detention. Such violence can affect the development of child impairing their mental,
physical and social being. Generally the offences committed against children or in which
children were affected are called Crimes against Children.
Crimes against Children still persists in Indian society and resulting in many problems
like Sexual Offences, Child Trafficking and child labour and other various problems. The
government of India is taking required measures to decrease following problems and even
Indian Constitution is guaranteeing many rights which safeguards the interest of the children.
Preventing child abuse is not simply a matter of parents doing a better job, but rather it is about
creating a context in which “doing better” is easier. Enlightened public policy and the
replication of high-quality publicly supported interventions are only part of what is needed to
successfully combat child abuse. It remains important to remind the public that
child abuse and neglect are serious threats to a child’s healthy development and that overt
violence toward children and a persistent lack of attention to their care and supervision are
unacceptable. Individuals have the ability to accept personal responsibility for reducing acts of
child abuse and neglect by providing support to each other and offering protection to all
children within their family and their community. As sociologist Robert Withrow has noted,
every volunteer effort or act of compassion finds its justification not in offering solutions for
society’s problems but in offering hope “both that the good society we envision is possible and
that the very act of helping each other gives us strength and a common destiny” (Withrow,
1991: 304). When the problem is owned by all individuals and communities, prevention will
progress, and fewer children will remain at risk.
 28

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