NEW DELHI: A whopping 1,121 rape cases were registered in the city in the first eight months of this year, the highest in the last 13 years.

Police see this rise in the number of cases as a good sign, saying that more cases are now being reported which was not the case earlier and a number of efforts have been taken to ensure women safety in the city after the last year's December 16 gang-rape case.

The number of reported cases which stands at 1,121, till August 31 this year, is more than double than last year's figure of 468 in the same period.

As per data of National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB), in 2011, the numbers of registered rape cases were 572, while 507 rape cases were reported in 2010.

The figure stood at 469 in 2009. In 2008, the figure was 466, while in 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001 the figures were 598, 623, 658, 551, 490, 403 and 381 respectively.

Calling it a good sign that now more cases are being reported which was not the case earlier, a senior police official said, "The rise in the number of reported cases means that now women are coming forward and reporting such incidents. Earlier, a number of cases went unreported as women were afraid of contacting police and also the social stigma which came with it.

"Today, complaints are recorded verbatim and FIRs are filed simply on the basis of the women's complaint without raising any issue. This has caused significant rise in the number of registered cases but we are not deterred by it," he said.

He also claimed that among all the cases of crime against women registered by Delhi police, more than 80 per cent of the perpetrators are arrested within the first week.

"A number of efforts have been taken to ensure women safety in the city after the last year's December 16 gangrape. We have set up a special women's cell to address crime against women. But above all, we need to sensitise the society," the the official said.

"Surveys reveal that in most cases, the attackers are known to the victim, which is the biggest deterrent for a woman to report such cases. So if the number of reported rape cases is increasing, it means that the efforts have started to yield fruits," the official said.