The real reason why Mumbai women won't buy that female condom

middays test drive gtgt Reporters attempt to buy female condoms at medical stores makes her subject of mock and ridicule and she is fleecedNobody buys female condoms Take the male condoms instead suggested a staffer at a 247 medical store when a midday reporter posed as a customer to buy a packet of condoms Said to be the most effective means of protection against HIV among women the internal condom also known as the female condom is considered both empowering and liberatingGrand Medical Store Bycullamiddays reporter seen making pit stops across 247 medical stores in the city in the wee hours on Tuesday PicsSameer MarkandeHowever this is clearly not the case in the megalopolis of Mumbai which according to the 2011 census boasts of a population of over 60 lakh women During a test drive at 12 medical stores across South Mumbai and the suburbs this reporters unusual requirement was either met with awkward stares or outright refusal enough to make any woman in the city think twice before contemplating to use one let alone buy it The stigma aside finding a female condom at any of these stores was like looking for a needle in a haystackParel Medical Store ParelSubject of speculationIf you ask for a female condom at any crowded medical store at night you might become the subject of speculation with the staff either sizing you up or throwing awkward stares A few staff were also taken aback by the brazenness of this reporter to ask for a female condomAlso read We dont use condoms says woman who mothered nine childrenWellness Forever SionOne shopkeeper at Royal Chemist at Byculla said We dont keep such products When this reporter asked for a reason he agitatedly said I dont know the reason we have never kept it Please go and check with some other store The reporter had similar experiences at several other storesSion Medico SionAccording to womens right activist Archana Mehra shopkeepers need to be sensitised when dealing with female customers No one takes offence or speculates if a man comes to buy condoms But the same people raise their eyebrows when a woman asks for it If women are made to feel uncomfortable they will never go and buy it said MehraDuping female customersThe staff at Grand Medical Store near JJ Hospital claimed they had only two packets of female condoms The MRP on the box was Rs 55 However when this reporter asked for a packet the shopkeeper tried selling it for R110 each The staff was alerted when the reporter threatened to file a complaintAlso read Not just the West sexual act of stealthing common in India too ExpertsAt Metro Medical Store in Bandra tried the staff tried to palm off a local female condombrand as an imported product It was being sold for Rs 200Commenting on the issue of overcharging Anand Patwardhan an expert in medical ethics and treasurer of Council For Fair Business Practices said Even if the supply is less no one can charge over and above the MRP This is exploitation In such cases one can file a complaint with the Legal Metrology departmentAnother reason why women choose against buying condoms is the marked difference in pricing While a packet of male condoms vary anywhere between Rs 8 Rs 12 female condom packets are being sold for anything above Rs 60 almost three times higher The lack of demand has also affected the supply says Ravishankar Joshi who has been working at a medical store in Worli for five years We only order one or two boxes of female condoms every week Compared to that we sell 1015 male condoms daily said JoshiYoung unemployed women cant afford such expensive condoms said Dr Rekha Daver former head of gynaecology department at JJ Hospital Female condoms are bigger in size and hence women think twice before using it These issues need to be addressedAlso read Married women subjected to forced condomless sex by husbands StudyAlso unlike male condoms that are provided free of cost at government and BMCrun hospitals female condoms are given at a discounted rate and is mostly targeted at sex workers National Aids Control Organisation too doesnt have any provision for female condoms As far as I know that there is no provision for female condoms under NACO as its difficult to use and needs training It may be distributed at a few areas only said Dr Shrikala Acharya project director of Mumbai Aids Control SocietyGynaecologist Dr Nikhil Datar said In the US and the UK the demand for female condoms is really high Considering the population of workingindependent women in Mumbai authorities need to encourage its use further