Swachh Bharat Abhiyan: Where is the cleanliness?

“The drive to cleanliness is the first step towards development.”

If India really wants to develop itself, the step towards cleanliness is a must. Maybe Modi wasn’t referring to dirt as a metaphor but the years of dirt and filth left behind by the previous Government literally needs to be eradicated too. Whatever the reference was, the initiative should be seen from a positive sense of view. I mean, it didn't make sense making filmstars and big industrialists to use the broom to sweep away some dust in front of cameras, but that was to attract people and make them aware that a certain thing called broom can be used to keep our surroundings clean. But no! Instead, people began making a mockery out of this initiative and inventing jokes based on it. Such intelligent people!

Every day, when I pass through the city, I see a clear indication about the absence of civic sense amongst the people. It actually creates a volcano inside me when I see brainless people throw away plastic and other litters from inside their cars on to the streets. It has become a fashionable habit to just open down the car-window and throw away the waste from inside the car itself. It feels as if their dream is to turn every road to a giant dustbin. Little do these people realize that by doing so, they are actually tarnishing the image of our own country. It feels terrible and painful to watch such sights. It's not just the roads but various public places as well. If you visit parks, public garden or even temples, you would see the litter spread around the dustbins instead of being inside them. The dustbins are supposed to have been pushed aside the corner to turn them to national treasures of the country. From packets of various snacks to the peel cover of fruits, these places are filled with various unimaginable stuffs. I mean, does someone have to put it on national television about the existence of dustbins and the simple way to use them? Other disturbing sights include walls of public buildings, where you would see them filled with those irritating red stains of chewed-betel nut-cum-leaves. I suppose these walls have moved on to serve a new purpose altogether: absorb tarnished and remixed human saliva! You can even see some walls decorated with messages like “Do not flush down here like a dog”, and you would see the very same walls soaked up with random people’s uric-acid filled liquid waste from their bladder. You wouldn’t get a better example of such a heightened act of sarcasm!

The noble initiative taken up by our Prime Minister isn’t just about sweeping our locality with a broom. It isn’t just about sweeping away the dirt in a more fashionable way. It is more about keeping our locality clean and hygienic. It is more about changing our age-old habits of foolishly dirtying our environment. So, the next time you are outdoors, remember to throw away any kind of waste inside the dustbin. Yes, inside the dustbin and not around it. Never spit away those wastes from your mouth on to any public walls. You don’t need to be a decorative painter of the walls. You even don’t have to show off your skills of being a dog while emptying out your bulging bladder on to a wall. Just whatever you do, remember to not make your locality dirty or for a kind, non-hygienic. A healthy environment is vital for a nation to be developed. Anyways, such talks would bring no good. So, just remember to keep your country clean and make good use of dustbins. And of course, keep yourself healthy as well. Jai Hind!