Nagpur, May 8(FN Bureau) Despite the government’s claims of maintaining law and order in Maharashtra, recent information has revealed a concerning trend that an average of 70 girls go missing from the state every day. According to Rupali Chakankar, the chairperson of the Maharashtra State Commission for Women, a total of 5,510 girls have gone missing from the state between January and March 2023. This news highlights the urgent need for increased efforts to protect the safety and well-being of girls in the state. The situation in Maharashtra regarding missing girls and women has been escalating with each passing month. The numbers for January, February, and April show that 1600, 1810, and 2200 girls respectively went missing during those months, which is alarming. The State commission for women , expressed concern over the ongoing trend, stating that the state has been at the top of the list for missing persons since 2020.
The situation is exacerbated by reports of girls being lured away with promises of marriage, love, and employment, only to be sexually assaulted. Rupali Chakankar has called on the Home Department to take immediate action to address this crucial issue. She has reported that in March, the number of missing girls in Maharashtra increased to 2,200, up from 1,810 in February, indicating a sharp increase of 390 girls missing in just one month. The information was gathered from the Department of Missing Persons in Mumbai and Chakankar has called for reports from the department to further investigate the situation.
Additionally, she has raised concerns about the effectiveness of the missing cell established by every politician and is questioning whether it is functioning appropriately to address this critical issue. Surprisingly, it has been revealed that the rate of missing girls is significantly higher in rural areas than in urban areas of Maharashtra. Pune, Nashik, Ahmednagar and Kolhapur districts have been identified as having particularly high rates of missing girls. In March alone, 2,258 girls were reported missing from Pune, followed by 161 in Nashik, 114 in Kolhapur, 133 in Thane, 101 in Ahmednagar, 81 in Jalgaon, and 82 in Sangli. These statistics highlight the urgent need to address the safety and protection of girls in rural areas of the state.