Dislocation of joints, nerve points: Women learn to deliver blows

The brutal Delhi gang rape, which brought thousands of women out on the streets to protest, has also resulted in women making a beeline to self-defence classes.

They are getting trained in street-fighting techniques. “After the brutal gang rape, many women, particularly working women, approached us for self-defence classes,”  says Shiv Makkar, martial arts trainer at 5 Element School of Arts in Rohini.

He says the school has already started two batches since the December 16 incident. “Many want to get trained in mixed martial arts, particularly street fighting,” he adds.
Street fighting is a self-defence technique in which an individual is taught to tackle at least five to six persons with and without weapons. Makkar said the most taught self-defence technique was ‘Aikido’, which trains  women on when, how and where to attack.

“Aikido is an effective self-defence technique that focusses on dislocation of joints and nerve points,” he adds.

Captain (retd) Jaipreet Joshi of Fitcomb, who conducts self-protection classes in Delhi and the National Capital Region, says he has been flooded with calls from working women and anxious parents ever since the incident happened.

“There has been a sudden surge for self-defence and personal protective training. This happens whenever the city sees a major crime against a woman,” Joshi says.

It is not just working women who are enrolling for such classes. “We are getting queries from women of all age groups, right from 15 to 50 years.”

A recent survey by industry group Assocham showed a 40 per cent fall in productivity of women employees at call centres and IT companies because many were afraid to venture out at night. They had reduced their working hours or had quit.

Roshini Singh, who works in a multinational company in Gurgaon, says she faced tremendous pressure from her parents to leave her well-paying job.

Pepper spray sales

The sale of pepper sprays and other self-defence tools, which come in handy for women when they are cornered by some attacker, has also gone up drastically ever since the gang rape was reported widely.

Retailers of pepper sprays say they have been selling over 50 cans per day, while the average sales used to be around 10 to 15 cans per day.

“Self-defence is the buzz these days. You can’t wait for others to help you every time you are in trouble. You either have to learn how to fight or use some kinds of personal weapon,” says Rashmi Arora, an IT professional.

“I know a lot of people who use electric shockers too,” she says.