A crime against a woman is reported every 70 seconds
These are the cases that were reported. The real number is, by every expert account, higher.
The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) — a government body — recorded 4,45,256 crimes against women in 2022, up 4% on the previous year and over 30% higher than in 2014. That is roughly 51 complaints every hour, or one every 70 seconds.
The largest categories were cruelty by a husband or his relatives (31.4%), kidnapping and abduction (19.2%), assault with intent to outrage modesty (18.7%), and rape (7.1%).
Where, and the caveat
Uttar Pradesh recorded the most cases; by rate per lakh women, Delhi (144), Haryana (119) and Telangana (118) were far above the national average of 66.
A crucial caveat cuts the other way from the usual political spin: higher reported numbers can partly reflect more women coming forward, which is good. But researchers consistently find large under-reporting — so the recorded figure is a floor, not a ceiling.
What moves the needle
Fast-track courts that actually run, trained and accountable policing, and conviction rates that don’t collapse on appeal are what convert reports into deterrence. Publishing district-level data and conviction outcomes — not just totals — is how citizens can hold the system to account.
Sources · Free to verify
This is a sourced explainer built on public data — not original reporting. Every figure traces to a source above.