Majority of street children face sex abuse in India

New Delhi, Jan 14 : In damning statistics, a government study has found that a vast majority of street children face sexual abuse in India, which is home to the world's largest number of destitute children.

According to a study conducted by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the overall incidence of physical abuse among street children was 66.8 per cent.

The majority of the street children facing physical abuse are in the age group of 5-12 years.

Around 55 per cent of the street children reported having undergone sexual abuse, it said.

The study covered 13 states -- Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal with a sample size of 12,447 children.

These included children in family environment, those attending schools, those in institutional care and street children. Out of these, 2,317 children (18.