Jamshedpur Rifle Club

Businessmen may have licence to fire, but many don’t know how to handle a gun.

The Jamshedpur Rifle Club has come forward to fill in this gap and urged the community, which has been under repeated attacks in the recent past, to seriously consider regular practice.

Incidentally, a large section of the 1,000-odd members of the club are traders, but barely 10 per cent of them attend the Sunday training conducted at the shooting range near Circuit House Area though most are either armed with licence or have applied for it.

“The club provides arms and ammunition to those who don’t own them. Businessmen must utilise this facility. Two experienced coaches run the gun training. Members, who are absent at the shooting sessions, should come and participate on a regular basis,” said club general secretary Uttamchand Debuka.

According to him, regular members benefit a lot from the weekly training. “One must learn many small things. For instance, on which side of the waist a gun must be kept, how it must be pulled out of its holster, how it must be loaded, locked or unlocked, how the trigger should be pulled, et al. One must also know where to keep a gun in a car for easy reach,” Debuka said.

He conceded that most club members, who were businessmen, were unaware of such vital know-how. “Traders are not feeling safe in Jamshedpur and it is high time they take self-defence seriously. The club is here to help.”

Citing examples, Debuka said a Jugsalai jeweller survived an attack two years ago because of regular training.

“One of the intruders had pointed a pistol at him, but the jeweller hit him with one hand and flashed his own weapon with the other, taking the gang by surprise. The criminals fled,” the club general secretary recalled.

“Last year, near Tinplate, some men intercepted a businessman’s car with knives and chains. The latter did not lose his cool and fired in the air with his revolver. The criminals ran away,” he added.

Rajen Singh, a wholesaler in Sakchi, said he would rethink attending the training. “It is a matter of life and death. We have become soft targets and must act now,” he said.