Cleanliness is godliness? - From the eyes of an Indian !!!

While waiting for a friend to reach at the Thane station, I wander on platform no. 10 to find a place to sit. While she would still take around half an hour to 45 minutes to come, I thought of passing my time online on Instagram and Whatsapp.

Bored in a few minutes, I got up and went to the IRCTC food stall in the station itself and bought 2 cartons of apple juice and while sloppily sipping the juice off the carton box, I looked around the platforms – no. 9 and 10.

At any given time, the station is always crowded.

I was watching the scuttle on the station!

Thane being a crowded city, the announcements, chatter of people, some waiting for their trains to come, office going people, college youngsters, almost all aged groups were busy with their own lives,  when I happened to see a group of 3 college girls eating samosas near the stall, I remembered my college days.I missed those days!

The train of thoughts was broken at once by a small kid who was crying. I searched for the source of the cry and found out that the kid was crying in a slum-like place, just next to the IRCTC stall.

He was maybe a year or two, running nose, shabby clothes, looked as if he had not bathed since ages! I felt pity for him.

I tried to search for his mom or anyone else, and I saw his mom sitting on the platform same as that of mine with her other kid who was just some months old, lying on the platform haphazardly!

I saw no care in her eyes or love for her own kids. Within the next couple of minutes another child probably of 2 years of age came running with an empty Bisleri bottle in his hands and he was trying to tell her that he wanted water!

His mom took the bottle from his hands and threw it across and gave him a shouting. I felt like getting up and slapping that woman, who couldn't even treat her own kids properly.

I wondered, why do such people even give birth to kids, if at all they can’t take care of them?

Shifting my gaze from this scenario, I saw those young girls who were still on the same stall enjoying their snacks. Once finished, they threw the paper dishes onto the ground and walked off.

I shook my head in disbelief and let out a sigh.  

While still waiting for my friend to come, I took out my second carton of apple juice and while sipping it, I saw one uncle on the same IRCTC food stall eating something and where he was standing, on the floor lay some paper dishes and he too throws off his plate onto the same place.

I draw my glaze around the platform, there were 3 dustbins near the 2 food stalls and 1 which the lady had brought along with her. But no one, not a single person who ate from those stalls, had put their dishes inside those bins, but all the trash was thrown onto the floor.

I felt like getting up and telling that uncle, that he looks educated and works in a nice place but still he doesn't have the simple etiquette to throw his paper dish, if not those already lying on the ground in the bins provided by the Railway!!

But I keep my thoughts to myself because I didn't want to create any scene and thought that lady will clean it up, maybe..

I tried to see where that lady is and if she cleans it up, but that lady who should be cleaning the whole place neatly, was sweeping as if it’s a huge task and she was least interested in cleaning!! I felt bad and then I quickly got up and put both the cartons of juice I had into the dustbin and came back to the place I was seating. 

I recollected few lines of the recently read novel – ‘shadows of the land’ where the author at the end of her book tells how it is, actually being in India and how different it is from the lifestyles in foreign countries! I felt distress about my own mother land.

Before I could pick up my phone and call my friend to ask her whereabouts, I saw the same small kid who had some time ago, brought an empty bottle,  standing near a garbage bin and peeling the banana, neatly putting the skin inside the bin!! 

I was in flabbergasted looking at that small kid! People, who are educated and dress up well and have money to eat good things, are least bothered about these small things, whereas that kid who has never even been in a school or taught by his parents about such things  doing such a nice deed, by keeping the place clean!

But before I could start penning down this whole scenario, I got a call from my friend saying she has reached the station, so I took my bag and walked away with a heavy heart, amazed at the innocence of that little being...!!

---X----X----X----X----X----X---X----X---X----X----X----X----

 This is just one small scene, but I’m sure most of us must have seen such things in our day to day life – slums, unclean public areas, and less bothered people, throwing off things in creek or sea water, people pooping in public places, and so on!!

I remember when we were small kids, we were taught in school – cleanliness is next to godliness!!

But we follow this only when it comes to our homes or maybe nearby surroundings!

But what about the whole town or the entire city??? 

Why not keep that clean as well?

And then its “we” who complain about the city being unclean and all dirt everywhere!!

Its ‘we’ who start with throwing polythene bags on the road side, on the stations, or in a creek or the sea!!!

We can stop when we see such people...

And I believe 1 man can make a difference…

WE can spread this message only when we follow this!!