Human Trafficking: The Alarming Case of India’s Missing Girls and Women. On July 30th, India, in harmony with the global community, observed World Day Against Trafficking in Persons for the year 2023, themed ‘Reach Every Victim of Trafficking, Leave No One Behind.’ Paradoxically, just four days prior, the government informed Parliament that, as per data compiled by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), a staggering 1,313,078 girls under the age of 18 and women had disappeared between 2019 and 2021.

However, it remains unclear how many of these 1.3 million missing individuals are victims of human trafficking. Recent crime statistics indicate a significantly lower count of trafficked girls and women over the last five years. This data discrepancy renders it nearly impossible to assess the true extent of this issue.

Human Trafficking: The Alarming Case of India’s Missing Girls and Women

On July 31, the Indian Express reported: “According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) website, 82,619 girls went missing in 2019, with 49,436 subsequently located. In the same year, 3,29,504 women went missing, while 1,68,793 were found. In 2020, there were 79,233 missing girls and 3,44,422 missing women. A total of 2,24,043 women were discovered, with no information on the number of girls rescued in 2019. 90,113 girls went missing in 2021, with 58,980 discovered; 3,75,058 women went missing, with 2,02,298 recovered.”

Ajay Kumar Mishra, the Minister of State for Home Affairs, emphasized that since law and order fall under the jurisdiction of state governments, the responsibility for safeguarding women ultimately rests with these state authorities. He stated, “The responsibilities for maintaining law and order, protecting the lives and property of citizens, including investigating and prosecuting crimes against women, lie with the respective state governments.”

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