According to official Delhi Police data, over 800 persons were reported missing in Delhi during the first 15 days of 2026, with women and girls making up roughly two-thirds of the instances. This is not just a 2026 trend.
Delhi had 24,508 reports of missing persons in 2025. With 14,870 cases more than 60% of these women made up the largest number of missing women ever recorded in a single year. There were 9,638 cases involving men. Police managed to trace 15,421 individuals, but 9,087 cases remain unresolved.
There were 807 missing persons between January 1 and January 15, or 54 missing persons every day on average. There were 298 men and 509 women and girls among them. According to the data, there were 616 reported missing adults and 191 reported missing adolescents. Adolescents are still at the biggest risk.
Since 2016, over 5,000 juveniles have disappeared annually on average, with girls making up around 3,500 of these cases. 3,970 girls were among the 5,081 teenagers who were reported missing in 2025 alone. 1,013 of them have not yet been located.
According to the data, 235 of the missing people have been found by police, while over 572 people are still unaccounted for. From January 1 to January 15, an average of 13 children went missing per day, with 146 of the 191 missing minors being girls, according to the data. Among the missing minors were 169 teenagers . Of these, 138 were teenage girls, and 31 were boys.
Police managed to trace 29 girls and 19 boys, but nearly 71 per cent of adolescents remain untraced, according to the data. Thirteen youngsters between the ages of eight and twelve went missing eight boys and five girls with only three boys being located.
Nine children in the under eight age group were reported missing, three of the boys were located, while the other six were not discovered.
Nonetheless, the majority of missing persons are still adults. 616 adults, 363 women and 253 men were reported missing in the first half of January. According to the data, 435 people are still unaccounted for, despite authorities being able to track down 90 men and 91 women.
In 2025, a total of 24,508 people were reported missing in Delhi, with women accounting for over 60 per cent of the cases at 14,870. There were 9,638 cases involving men. Police managed to trace 15,421 individuals, but 9,087 cases remain unresolved, the data revealed.
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A decadal analysis highlights a troubling trend in the rising number of missing persons each year. According to Delhi Police records, 2,32,737 people were reported missing in Delhi over the previous ten years, with about 1.8 lakh people being found. However, nearly 52,000 cases are still pending.
Furthermore, the data painted a sobering picture of the dangers Delhi’s youth face. Over 5,000 teenagers have gone missing annually on average since 2016, with girls making up nearly 3,500 of these cases. 3,970 of the 5,081 minors who were reported missing in 2025 were girls, and 1,013 of them have not been located.
