Mahila Vikas Manch (Kolhan), a women’s rights outfit, has decided to provide free self-defence training in the form of martial arts to women in Jamshedpur in the wake of rising instances of sexual assault and stalking.

“We had been receiving complaints from girls and also women going to office about being stalked. There have been instances of molestation on lonely stretches of roads, too. Recently, there has been a spurt in chain snatching in city areas. After a lot of deliberation, we decided to hold discussions with a Jamshedpur-based outfit giving training in karate and form a special weeklong module on basic self-defence techniques for women to thwart such attacks. It would be completely free of cost. Participants will have to fill up a registration form costing Rs 10. They will get a certificate after completing the training,” said Nishat Khatoon, president of the Mahila Vikas Manch’s Kolhan unit.

According to data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) in September this year, the country on an average recorded 87 rape cases daily in 2019 and overall 4,05,861 cases of crime against women during the year, a rise of over 7 per cent from 2018. In Jharkhand, between January and October, there have been nearly 180 rape cases.

Mahila Vikas Manch, which been raising women’s rights issues in the region for over a decade, will take the help of Jamshedpur-based Jharkhand Martial Art Training Centre instructors Sunil Kumar Prasad and Shilpi Das (both black belts).

“We decided to have a tie-up with Jharkhand Martial Art Training Centre as they have been organising similar training camps for women in the past and has a module ready. Based on their suggestion, we will be organising a weeklong camp beginning from November 27 (till December 4) for two hours (between 2.30pm and 4.30pm) daily,” Khatoon said.

There is no limitation on the number of participants as the training sessions would be organised near the sprawling area close to Sir Dorabji Tata Park and near Sacred Heart Convent in Bistupur.

“We decided to begin with Jamshedpur, and based on the feedback, hold similar camps in the mining belt of Chaibasa and forest areas of Chakradharpur and small-scale industrial areas of Adityapur and Gamharia in neighbouring Seraikela-Kharsawan district. Our units in Ranchi and Dhanbad will hold similar camps soon,” Khatoon added.
Mitali Choudhary, a homemaker from Jamshedpur, welcomed the idea.

“The state police had last month released a WhatsApp number for each district. There is also the emergency number 100. But in the spur of the moment, one finds it difficult to call the emergency numbers, especially in cases of chain snatching and groping, which happen all of a sudden. In such situations, self-defence techniques are a must. I will be registering for the camp,” the middle-aged homemaker said.