NCJ Number
131571
Journal
Social Defense Volume: 27 Issue: 96 Dated: (1989) Pages: 16-23
Date Published
1989
Length
8 pages
Annotation
In India, girl offenders between the ages of 7 and 18 and boy offenders between the ages of 7 and 16 are treated as juvenile delinquents. The rate of juvenile delinquency appears to be increasing due to the rapid pace of industrialization and urbanization, the weakening of family ties, and other social factors.
Abstract
While more boys than girls were arrested for delinquency, the proportion of female offenders is growing. Less than 14 percent of juvenile delinquents were habitual offenders; over half came from families with low monthly incomes. Causes of delinquency are attributed to physical and physiological, psychological and psychiatric, and economic and sociological factors. The major source of Indian legislation in this area is the Juvenile Justice Act of 1986 which is progressive, rehabilitative, and humanitarian. The Act specifies the need for the establishment of essential institutional machinery to effect its implementation, the development of diversified and dynamic treatment for juvenile offenders, the destigmatization of the criminal justice system, the coordination of services, the depenalization and deinstitutionalization of the criminal justice system, and the increased participation of the family in rehabilitation.