<p>Kerala and Uttar Pradesh accounted for 77.45% of the cases of children being used for pornography in three years between 2017 and 2019 even as such cases shot by around 14 times during the period nationally.</p>.<p>The number of cases of child abuse on the internet also rose by three times during the period with Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and West Bengal topping the list of ignominy.</p>.<p>The figures provided by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in Rajya Sabha on Thursday showed that the cases of child pornography rose from seven cases in 2017 to 44 in 2018 and 102 in 2019.</p>.<p>Kerala has the highest number of such cases with 45 followed by Uttar Pradesh by 34 and Madhya Pradesh 10.</p>.<p>The topper Kerala had no such case in 2017 but 2018 recorded 18 such cases and 2019 reported 27, the highest for any state in any of the three years. Uttar Pradesh reported 34 cases -- one in 2017, eight in 2018 and 25 in 2019.</p>.<p>When it comes to cases of child abuse on the internet, there were a total of 88 cases in 2017, which rose to 232 in 2018 and 305 in 2019.</p>.<p>Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of 128 cases in three years followed by Kerala 55, Madhya Pradesh 40, Karnataka 35 and West Bengal 29.</p>.<p>In a written reply in Rajya Sabha, Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani said the Centre has implemented the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, which is a comprehensive law that provides protection to children from the offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment and pornography.</p>.<p>"The POCSO Act has been amended in 2019 in order to make it more effective in dealing with cases of child sex abuse in the country. It addresses the need for stringent measures to deter the rising trend of child sex abuse in the country on one hand and the menace of relatively new kind of crimes on the other hand. Further the definition of child pornography has been included under Section 2(da) and punishment under Section 14 and Section 15 of the Act has been provided," she added.</p>.<p>Irani also said the government periodically blocks websites containing extreme child sexual abuse material (CSAM) based on Interpol's 'worst of list' received through the CBI, the national nodal agency for Interpol in India.</p>.<p>The Centre has also issued an order to Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to work out a suitable arrangement for receiving Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), UK list of CSAM websites and webpages on a dynamic basis and block access to child pornography.</p>.<p>The Department of Telecom has requested all ISPs to make suitable arrangements to spread awareness among their subscribers about the use of parental control filters in the end-user machines through messages of email, invoices, SMS and website among others.</p>
<p>Kerala and Uttar Pradesh accounted for 77.45% of the cases of children being used for pornography in three years between 2017 and 2019 even as such cases shot by around 14 times during the period nationally.</p>.<p>The number of cases of child abuse on the internet also rose by three times during the period with Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and West Bengal topping the list of ignominy.</p>.<p>The figures provided by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in Rajya Sabha on Thursday showed that the cases of child pornography rose from seven cases in 2017 to 44 in 2018 and 102 in 2019.</p>.<p>Kerala has the highest number of such cases with 45 followed by Uttar Pradesh by 34 and Madhya Pradesh 10.</p>.<p>The topper Kerala had no such case in 2017 but 2018 recorded 18 such cases and 2019 reported 27, the highest for any state in any of the three years. Uttar Pradesh reported 34 cases -- one in 2017, eight in 2018 and 25 in 2019.</p>.<p>When it comes to cases of child abuse on the internet, there were a total of 88 cases in 2017, which rose to 232 in 2018 and 305 in 2019.</p>.<p>Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of 128 cases in three years followed by Kerala 55, Madhya Pradesh 40, Karnataka 35 and West Bengal 29.</p>.<p>In a written reply in Rajya Sabha, Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani said the Centre has implemented the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, which is a comprehensive law that provides protection to children from the offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment and pornography.</p>.<p>"The POCSO Act has been amended in 2019 in order to make it more effective in dealing with cases of child sex abuse in the country. It addresses the need for stringent measures to deter the rising trend of child sex abuse in the country on one hand and the menace of relatively new kind of crimes on the other hand. Further the definition of child pornography has been included under Section 2(da) and punishment under Section 14 and Section 15 of the Act has been provided," she added.</p>.<p>Irani also said the government periodically blocks websites containing extreme child sexual abuse material (CSAM) based on Interpol's 'worst of list' received through the CBI, the national nodal agency for Interpol in India.</p>.<p>The Centre has also issued an order to Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to work out a suitable arrangement for receiving Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), UK list of CSAM websites and webpages on a dynamic basis and block access to child pornography.</p>.<p>The Department of Telecom has requested all ISPs to make suitable arrangements to spread awareness among their subscribers about the use of parental control filters in the end-user machines through messages of email, invoices, SMS and website among others.</p>
