A 12-year-old girl who was repeatedly raped at her home wrote a heartbreaking message saying 'sorry, mother' as Indian authorities took her away to safety.

The girl was sexually assaulted by as many as 30 men over two years, it is feared, with her family allegedly paid in return.

She wrote the message on the wooden door to her apartment in Kerala as she was taken to a shelter home, after details of the abuse emerged in counselling sessions.

According to the counsellor, who spoke to the Times of India, the traumatised girl even felt 'guilty' that the alleged source of family income would be stopped.

An Indian girl wrote this heartbreaking message on her door, meaning 'sorry, mother', as she was taken away by authorities after being raped by up to 30 men at her home. The image was published by the Times of India

The young victim told the counsellor that she had first been raped by her father's friend, who had given money to the family.

Her father was unemployed and a third person was involved in collecting money from the men who abused her, it is claimed.

The father was reportedly arrested on Sunday night, while the mother denies the claims against the family and has demanded that her daughter be brought back.

The girl confided in a counsellor at her school last week and has since given a statement to Indian authorities.

'She started crying when asked about what was going on at home. She said her family, including a sick grandmother, was in dire need of money and that they hadn't even been able to pay rent,' the counsellor explained.

'She was worried that the family would be in deeper financial crisis if her father was taken into custody. The girl didn't even seem to recognize that she was being abused.'

Neighbours said they had suspected that 'something questionable' was happening in the apartment in Malappuram.

One woman said she had heard a little girl crying and seen men coming to the house but had not wanted to interfere.

The girl had apparently started to skip school and her health had suffered, but initially nothing was done.

Eventually, a neighbour tipped off school authorities and she was sent for the counselling sessions where she explained what had happened.

She has since been taken away to a shelter home.

A medical examination has since confirmed that the girl was raped, according to local media.