59,365 children went missing in Madhya Pradesh in four and a half years, girls worst affected
The state government told the Assembly that 59,365 children, mostly girls, went missing between January 2021 and July 2025, with 17,410 still untraced. The opposition and child rights activists criticised the government.
Big failure of Madhya Pradesh government: 58,000 children missing in four and a half years, daughters most affected!
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A shocking reality about child safety emerged in Madhya Pradesh. In the four and a half years from January 2021 to July 2025, a total of 59,365 children went missing, including 48,274 girls and 11,091 boys. The state government itself admitted these figures in the Assembly, but questions were being raised about the system’s failure behind them. The opposition and child rights activists called it a “failure of the Beti Bachao campaign”, while the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) had also issued a notice over police inaction.
In reply to a question by Congress MLA Sachin Yadav in the Assembly, the government disclosed that of the total missing children, only 41,955 could be traced, while 17,410 children were still missing. Big cities such as Indore and Bhopal had become the centre of the problem. In Indore, 4,574 children went missing, including 3,560 girls, while in Bhopal 2,980 cases were registered, including 1,804 girls. The situation was also described as alarming in districts such as Gwalior, Khargone and Dhar, where trafficking and police delays were cited as the main causes.
