There was a marked increase in the number of sexual assault cases in Andhra Pradesh in 2013, state police chief B. Prasada Rao said Tuesday.
The number of rape cases went up by over 20 percent while cases of outraging the modesty of a woman rose sharply by over 47 percent.
Director General of Police Rao attributed this to the registration of cases by police immediately after receiving complaints from victims.
Earlier, cases were registered after verification of the complaints.
During the year, police registered 1,016 cases under the Nirbhaya Act, the stringent law passed by parliament this year to check crimes against women.
Till November, 1,434 rape cases were registered against 1,191 cases in 2012. Police also registered 5,624 cases of outraging of modesty till November while this number stood at 3,821 last year, Rao said at a year-end news conference here.
Overall crimes against women showed an increase of over 15 percent during 2013. Their number stood at 25,998 this year against 22,585 till November in 2012.
There were 133 dowry murders, 437 dowry deaths and 662 murder cases during the year, a slight decline in all three categories compared to the 2012 figures.
The police chief said they were taking various measures to check crimes against women. These include improving visible policing, installation of CCTV cameras and better enforcement of the Nirbhaya Act.
The state has 32 women police stations and police have sent a proposal to the government for opening 131 more such police stations.
Special classes are also being conducted to create awareness among police personnel about the Nirbhaya Act.
The overall crime rate in the state went up by nearly 13 percent in 2013.
Economic offences also showed an upward trend. The total amount involved stood at Rs.1,627 crore. Cases registered under cyber crimes increased from 490 to 608 this year.
With the state continuing to face a critical situation over Telangana, police were handling the matter tactfully and effectively with minimum use of force in both Telangana and Seemandhra, he said.
As many as 95 companies of central paramilitary forces and 31 companies of Andhra Pradesh Special Police have been deployed to handle agitations for and against a separate Telangana state.
Rao said that Maoist violence declined in the state, which was once a stronghold of the Left-wing extremists. It came down by 35 percent during the year.
The police chief said Maoists from Chhattisgarh were trying to renew their activities in Khammam and Warangal districts. They were also active in the Andhra Pradesh-Odisha border areas. Forces in the border districts are being strengthened to check such activity. he added.(IANS)