How to Report Child Abuse in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on 1121
Call 1121 to report child abuse in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. District Child Protection Unit numbers, what happens after you call, and what the KP law punishes.
To report child abuse in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, call 1121. It is the free, 24-hour helpline of the KP Child Protection and Welfare Commission (KPCPWC). If a child is being hurt right now, call police on 15 first. You can also go to the Child Protection Unit in your district.
A boy of nine begs at the same Peshawar signal every morning. Most people who see this know something is wrong. They just do not know who to tell.
In KP, the answer is a law and a number. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Act, 2010 set up the commission, and the commission runs 1121. We read the commission's website and its copy of the Act, updated to June 2022, on 3 October 2026. Its own case data shows 34,897 children at risk registered across 12 districts.
Call 1121 for abuse, neglect, begging or a child alone
Call 1121 when a child in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is abused, neglected, made to beg, left alone, or harmed by the people meant to care for them. The call is free and open 24 hours. Call 15 instead when the child faces danger at this very moment.
The Act calls these "children at risk". The list covers a child who is begging, homeless, abused, exploited or abandoned, or whose parent cannot care for them. A child means anyone under 18.
| What you see | Who to contact | Number |
|---|---|---|
| A child is being hurt right now | Police | 15 |
| Abuse, neglect or cruelty you know about | KPCPWC helpline | 1121 |
| A child begging or living on the street | KPCPWC helpline or district unit | 1121 |
| You want to visit or write to an office | KPCPWC provincial office, Peshawar | 091 9217055 |
| Sexual images of a child shared online | Federal cybercrime agency and 1121 | See below |
How to report child abuse in KP, step by step
Call 1121, give the exact place, describe what you saw in plain words, and leave a phone number. A Child Protection Officer can then act. Do not try to confront the abuser yourself, and do not post the child's photo online.
- Check for danger. If the child is being beaten or taken away now, call 15.
- Call 1121. Give the district, the area and a landmark. "Near the mosque on the main road in Kohat" helps more than "in Kohat".
- Say what you saw or heard. Give dates and times if you have them. Say whether it happened once or keeps happening.
- Leave your number. Officers may need to call back. Ask for your name to be kept private.
- Write it down. Note the time of your call and anything you were told. Call your district unit if nothing seems to happen.
We did not call 1121 to test it, because a test call ties up a line meant for children.
Child Protection Units in 12 KP districts take cases directly
The commission lists Child Protection Units in 12 districts: Abbottabad, Bannu, Battagram, Buner, Charsadda, Chitral, Kohat, Lower Dir, Mardan, Peshawar, Swabi and Swat. Each has its own phone number. In other districts, call 1121 and they will route the case.
Under the Act, the district Social Welfare Officer heads the unit, with Child Protection Officers under them. The unit registers the child, assesses what the family needs, and arranges help such as shelter, health care or school.
| District | Unit phone |
|---|---|
| Peshawar | 091 3067011 |
| Mardan | 0937 548334 |
| Abbottabad | 0992 336718 |
| Swat | 0946 728610 |
| Kohat | 0922 515634 |
| Bannu | 0344 1979454 |
| Charsadda | 0315 2224955 |
| Swabi | 0938 223372 |
The other four units are in Battagram (0997 543566), Buner (0939 510870), Chitral (0943 3413602) and Lower Dir (0945 821130). The office hours given for the provincial office are Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm. The helpline itself does not close.
A commission press release of 22 February 2026 says new units were approved for Mansehra, Shangla, Malakand, Dera Ismail Khan and Nowshera, and puts the total at 24. The contact page still lists 12. We could not confirm the five new units are open, so call 1121 if you live there.
What happens after you call 1121
A Child Protection Officer can take a child at risk into protection and must bring the child before a Child Protection Court within 24 hours. The court decides who keeps the child and must finish the case within four months.
If the child lives with a parent or guardian, the officer does not remove the child at first. The officer reports to the court, which can order the parents to produce the child. That step is skipped when the child is begging or the parent is the one accused.
The court prefers to keep a child with parents or extended family. It places a child in a Child Protection Institution only when that is better for the child. Officers can also register an FIR, the first police report, against anyone who commits an offence under the Act. If a case needs a lawyer, KP's free legal aid is open to families who cannot pay.
The KP law punishes violence, cruelty and child begging
The Act makes violence, cruelty, harmful customs and using a child for begging criminal offences. Most carry up to three years in jail. These offences are cognizable and non-bailable, so police can arrest without a warrant and bail is not automatic.
| Offence under the KP Act | Maximum punishment |
|---|---|
| Corporal punishment, section 34 | 6 months, or fine up to Rs 50,000, or both |
| Violence against a child, section 37 | 3 years and fine up to Rs 100,000 |
| Violence by a group of more than two, section 37 | 10 years each and fine up to Rs 100,000 each |
| Cruelty by a person in charge, section 44 | 3 years rigorous jail and fine up to Rs 50,000 |
| Using a child for begging, section 45 | 3 years rigorous jail and fine up to Rs 50,000 |
Corporal punishment is abolished in all forms in KP, including at school and at home. The Act also keeps a Register of Sexual Offenders. A person on it cannot work in any organisation dealing with children in the province. These figures come from the commission's June 2022 copy of the Act, so check for any later amendment before you rely on an exact amount.
Child marriage works differently. The KP Act says protection against child marriage follows the federal laws on that subject, so it does not set its own penalty. A child who has run into the law is a separate topic again, with rights on arrest under federal juvenile law.
Your report stays confidential, and good faith is protected
Reports about a child at risk are confidential under section 23 of the Act. Nobody may publish the child's name, school, address or photo. A person who reports honestly, in good faith, is protected from legal action under section 60.
Media that name or picture a child at risk face a fine of up to Rs 10,000. Please do not share the child's photo in a WhatsApp group either, however angry you feel.
One warning. If a court finds a report false or vexatious, it can order the informer to pay up to Rs 100,000 to the accused. An honest mistake is not the same thing. Report what you actually saw.
Some abuse happens online. If someone is sharing sexual images of a child, or threatening a child with images, report it to the federal cybercrime agency as well, using the steps for online blackmail and sextortion. If the abuse is inside a home and the victim is a woman or the child's mother, a protection order in KP can keep the abuser away.
Common questions
What is the child protection helpline number in KP?
It is 1121. The KP Child Protection and Welfare Commission says the line is free and open 24 hours. Call 15 if a child is in danger right now.
Can I report child abuse in KP without giving my name?
You can ask for your name to be kept private, and reports are confidential under the Act. Leaving a number still helps, because officers may need to call you back.
Which KP districts have a Child Protection Unit?
The commission lists 12: Abbottabad, Bannu, Battagram, Buner, Charsadda, Chitral, Kohat, Lower Dir, Mardan, Peshawar, Swabi and Swat. Five more were approved in February 2026.
Is hitting a child at school allowed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa?
No. The KP Act abolishes corporal punishment in all forms. The penalty is up to six months in jail, a fine of up to Rs 50,000, or both.
What happens to a child after a Child Protection Officer takes them?
The officer must bring the child to a Child Protection Court within 24 hours. The court then decides custody, prefers family care, and must decide within four months.
Where do I report child abuse in Punjab instead?
Punjab has its own bureau, also on 1121. The process for reporting child abuse in Punjab is separate from KP's.
How we verified this
What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.
Last checked on 3 October 2026. The 1121 helpline, the provincial office phone 091 9217055, its Hayatabad address and hours, the 12 Child Protection Units with their phone numbers, and the case data of 34,897 registered children, 32,535 closed and 2,362 in progress are read on the KP Child Protection and Welfare Commission website. The five new units are read in the commission's press release of 22 February 2026 on the same site. Definitions, unit functions, the 24-hour production rule, the four-month decision limit, confidentiality, the publication ban, the punishments and the good faith protection are read in the commission's copy of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Act, 2010, updated to June 2022. We did not place a test call to 1121, and we could not confirm whether any amendment after June 2022 changed the penalties.
About the author
Public Services and Education Journalist
Fajr Riaz is a journalist and content writer at Pakistan Era, based in Lahore. She covers the questions people meet in everyday life in Pakistan: how a public service works, what a change in the rules means, and where to find a reliable answer.
