City's Juvenile Homes Pushed to Brink With Rise in Crime by Teens

In Kingsway Camp in north Delhi, over 100 minors are currently packed into a non-decrepit facility designed to house just 60 children in conflict with the law (CCLs).

- Hemani Bhandari

NEW DELHI: Every few days, police vans back up to its entrance, dropping off more boys—many of them accused of serious, sometimes violent crimes. With no place else to send them, the home simply swells beyond capacity.

Overcrowding has become routine at homes housing under-trial juvenile boys across the Capital, and officials say it mirrors a sharp and sustained spike in juvenile crime. Data from the Women and Child Development (WCD) department shows that Delhi has eight homes for children in conflict with the law. Of those, five have the combined capacity to house a total of 285 boys facing trial, as of May 5, data shows. A total of 421 boys were housed in these five facilities, which together have a sanctioned capacity of only 285. Just two years ago, in May 2023, the number stood at 199—meaning the homes were operating at roughly 70% capacity.

In less than 24 months, the population has more than doubled, pushing the system to its limits.

These include the Observation Home for Boys at Delhi Gate, which houses boys up to the age of 16 and has a sanctioned capacity of 75 but was home to 82 minors as of May 5. In Kingsway Camp, two Observation Homes for boys between the ages of 16 and 18 are supposed to hold 50 each—but both were housing 75. The "Place of Safety" in Majnu ka Tilla, which is meant for older CCLs aged 16 to 18 undergoing inquiries for heinous offences and those who were caught after turning 18 for crimes committed earlier, was built to hold 60, but currently houses 110.

In the same area, SPYM at Sewa Kutir in Kingsway Camp, a facility meant to provide de-addiction treatment for drug-addicted juveniles, currently houses 79.