Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi (SHP)

New Delhi, Dec 11: Post the Hyd rape-murder case of the 26-year-old Vet doctor, Indian women are equipping themselves with techniques to defend themselves against the crime. Self-defence experts say only a minuscule portion of India’s more than 650 million women have access to self-defence classes which are likely to be accessible to those living in cities.

“Every time there is a major incident, we see a spike in inquiries,” said Ritesh Reddy, who teaches self-defence in the tech hub of Bengaluru. “But the challenge is learning self-defence requires a committed involvement,” he added.

Meanwhile, along with a surge in self-defence classes, Amazon India announced that the sale of pepper spray cans spiked eight times since the Hyderabad case.

It was observed that the top-selling 'safety and security' items on Amazon’s India site were pepper sprays, as compared to its portals in the United States, Canada or Singapore, where home monitoring devices and alarm systems were fast selling.

“We have run out of inventory in the past four to five days,” said Rana Singh, proprietor of Bengaluru-based Aax Global, which makes the popular Cobra branded pepper sprays.

Singh stated that the canisters which seamlessly fit in a woman’s handbag were the company’s most sought-after product.

In the state of Uttar Pradesh, where more than 4,200 rape cases - the most in the country - were reported in 2017, victims have formed an organization, Red Brigade, aimed at empowering women.

“There is barely a school in the city of Lucknow where we have not conducted our camps,” said founder Usha Vishwakarma.

Protests have continued across India since the deaths of the two victims in Hyderabad and Unnao with many people venting online about what they see as an endemic problem.

“This has to stop. It is not possible, or healthy, to monitor your child every moment of the day,” said Mumbai resident Shraboni Lahiri, mother of a 4-year-old girl.