Swachch Bharat! My clean India

I am often tagged teasingly by my friends and peers as "The Environmentalist" due to my commitment to ensure proper hygeine, my efforts to combat littering and ensure proper disposals in my presence. It is all in good fun and it never hinders me from my commitment, because I know I am right. I am determined, because I love my nation.

From infancy we are taught that cleanliness is second to Godliness. We are trained to not only to keep our body, mind, manners and books clean, but our surroundings and the entire eco-system as well.

As children we are given lectures about the importance of hygiene and the hazards of litter. Rewards and punishments were used to enhance this message and imbibe in us such healthy and good habits. Whenever we made an effort at cleanliness we were given accolades and rewarded little medals and candies; whenever we were caught erring, like unpolished shoes, dirty unclipped nails, littering the school-premises, etc, we were made to stand dunce outside classrooms and scolded before in front of our peers to ensure such acts would not be repeated.

But, as we grew up reality was far from the innocent lessons we were taught as kids. There is little resemblance to it with the public en-masse. Furthermore, we see how little others care, and at least think about it. Consequently, we wonder, "What the heck does it matter? Why should we continue picking up after others? Who cares? What difference does it make anyway? How can I alone change the world?"

And we too joined the crowd.

What we fail to realise is that WE CAN BE THE CHANGE. If we would do our bit, encourage our companions to do the same, and try to persuade our neighbours like-wise, we can make a difference. If we show that we care, those who look up to us will care too. If we don’t follow the crowd, and do our tiny bit, each and everyone of us, we can rectify the situation.

It is really strange if we think about it. We cannot bear to hold on to a chocolate wrapper, an empty packet of chips or cookies, fruit-peels or a soiled tissue cloth until we find a waste bin and simply discard it on the spot. But, we don’t mind walking through or driving past the same litter on the streets.

When the same litter accumulates near our homes; or is strewn in our court-yards by the winter breeze and clogs our drains; when the same litter emits foul odours during summer and causes flooding of rain-water during monsoons; when the same litter causes pollution and breeds air/water-borne diseases and food-infestations, we raise hell and blame everyone except ourselves. We refuse to see that we are the cause of all these evils.

We are being redeemed for our own mistakes! If we had not littered in the first place, none of these problems would have occurred?

To make our India really clean and beautiful, we need to clean our thought-process first and become children at heart once again. We must do what we did as children to keep ourselves, our homes and our surroundings clean, with the same diligence, zeal and belief.

Also do use proper urinals and public toilets. Do not spit on the streets,

Maintain personal care and hygeine to avoid all illnesses.

Separate your garbage according to Government guidelines.

Recycle.

The erring habits are really nasty and shameful for a civilized soceity and following the aforementioned points is really healthy and easy.

Join Mr. Amitabh Bachchan and like-minded individuals in the Banega Swachh India campaign initiated by NDTV network and Dettol India by visiting the link here:

http://swachhindia.ndtv.com/