53 per cent children face one or more forms of sexual abuse, says government

New Delhi: A centrally-sponsored survey has found that more than 53 per cent children in the country faced one or more forms of sexual abuse, the Rajya Sabha was informed Wednesday.

Minister of State for Home, Hansraj Ahir, said that the Ministry of Women and Child Development had conducted a study on Child Abuse in 2007, covering 13 states and more than 13,000 children.

The study revealed that that more than 53 per cent of children interviewed reported having faced one or more forms of sexual abuse and 21.90 per cent child respondents reported facing severe forms of sexual abuse and 50.76 per cent other forms of sexual abuse, he said in written reply to a question.

Ahir said 50 per cent abusers were persons known to the child and most children did not report the matter to anyone.

Children on street, at work and in institutional care reported the highest incidence of sexual assault, he said.

The 13 states where the survey was conducted were - Assam, Mizoram, Goa, Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Kerala.