Mumbai: There has been a rise of 22 per cent in rape cases in Mumbai and 51 per cent in instances of sexual assault from 2014-15 to 2018-19, according to the NGO Praja Foundation.

The NGO, in its report published on Thursday, said there has been an alarming increase in the number of crime cases against women and children in the metropolis.

According to the report, there has been a spurt of 22 per cent in rape cases and 51 per cent in sexual assaults from 2014-15 to 2018-19.

Moreover, of the reported rape/sexual assault cases in 2018-19, 69 per cent victims were below the age of 18 years, the NGO said in a statement on Thursday.

It said in the financial year 2018-19, 784 rape cases were registered in Mumbai, in which 540 victims were below 18 years of age.

The report revealed that in 90 per cent of Protection of Children against Sexual Offences (POCSO) cases, offenders were known to the victims.

Elaborating, Nitai Mehta, founder and trustee of Praja Foundation said, "Out of 540, in over 527 cases offenders were known to the minor victims, while only 54 offenders were unknown.

"It is a matter of introspection for all of us, as a society, that our children are being abused by people known to them. Urgent steps must be taken to address the matter at several levels."

On the other hand, as many as 2,533 cases of sexual assault were registered in Mumbai in 2018-19, in which 352 victims were minors, revealed the report.

The NGO, however, did not provide figures for 2014-15. Of the sexual crimes registered under the POCSO Act in 2018-19, there were 69 victims under the age of six years, it said.