The immunity towards civic sense Tolerance had always been that
indefinable force bottled with
in me that could never garner any respect. The ever boiling rage fuelled by rebukes from indispensable corners had the better of me.
To add to disgust was the ever expanding infestation of the most inhumane species to have graced this planet…humans.
Every individual possessing personal brains but with the lost ability of reasoning, being driven by an insane quest for control and a race to surge ahead.
Being a significant ratio of the greater Indian population, Shillongites have never lagged behind at least in terms of contributing to deterioration and enhancing the natural beauty around them.
It was obvious that this deserted pine city needed many changes to be able to call itself a part of the ‘Great Indian Show’.
It is very encouraging to see the capability of the population here to completely turn the face of a serene and quiet hill station into a mucky, ‘worth-rejecting’ destination.
Leave aside ‘administrative failures’ for its humiliating enough but ‘civic sense’ also seems to be a forgotten word.
Any outsider being brought to Shillong blindfolded and if asked to describe their expected view would definitely reply, “Let’s see. From what I have heard, there is a wonderful tranquillity all around, a fresh breeze all day long, lush pine trees covering the majestic hills, a clean city and wonderful people…a synonym to paradise.”
Open his blindfold and if he survives the shock, he may see he is far from reality.
Indiscriminate honking and noise filled city that ‘looks’ fast paced but statistics show otherwise. Trees chopped to make way for housing the shooting population graph. A city filled with bad print quality posters that resemble some strife torn warzone, beautiful views of people spitting to add a dash of colour to these very posters, a chaotic anarchy in toto.
Civic sense was never a part of the State board curriculum but came imbibed in many the moment they took their first breath.
We only knew the basics of behavioural science in the half an hour periods of ‘value education’ and this too is going well down the drain. We have reached a point that our own shameful deeds fail to redden our cheeks, leave alone reform.
Impatience and a disregard for the city’s general outlook is possibly the goal we are racing to reach. The typical attitude of ‘my house ends at my gate’ has ensured that ‘beyond the gate’ is transformed to an obnoxious wasteland.
It is beyond any logical reason as to why half the populace finds it so entertaining to leave their colourful ‘oral liquid’ slithering down city walls. Some can blow your minds when you see high rise posters having ‘kwai stains’ which depict that we do accept challenges. Like mentioned once, marking territories should be best left to the animal kingdom.
Telling people not to spit or pointing out the mistakes hardly works. Many a times, a scene is created for no rhyme or reason and the point of civic sense is lost in the “balei? kwah ne?” drama. It may be the ‘shnong lajong’ but it is in a mess.
Imposing fine has actually made me realise we aren’t a third world country. We have so much money to pay as fine & bribe!! So where do we start- with the common man or at the Centre where we make our ever breaking laws???
Our actions have led to a sad state of affairs where big red signs of ‘PLEASE DO NOT PASS URINE’ adorn every alley in the city. Why in the name of the holy Lord will anyone unzip to water the pavements? Are we living in an era where toilets have not yet been invented or the construction of numerous public toilets surpasses the allocated funds of the government? Well, some go a step ahead, spitting as they urinate in the open. Whom to blame and which source to rectify? Apart from the grown up ‘shameless strippers’, parents encourage their kids when they themselves choose a corner, looking around and whisper, “Fast! No one is looking…”
Ironically, these very educated ‘Indians’ I have noticed, behave prim & proper abroad displaying the best intricate manners after leaving our country.
How can we forget the ‘PLEASE DO NOT RUB LIME OR SPIT’ notice in every imaginable corner of the city which itself has a thousand lime stains. The numerous ‘PLEASE DON’T’ signboards are a humiliation enough for those who have the big tumour on their neck…the one we gleefully call ‘brain’.
Shame is one emotion that needs to be taught here. We need to have courses in educational institutes such has ‘what to feel while littering’ and ‘what to feel while peeing in the open’.
How can we forget the young Olympian spirit in every one which raises its head in the form of us aiming for the garbage dump a mile away and many a times creating one wherever we feel like.
It is high time that basic senses should be slapped into us. The ‘cave man’ ideology needs to be wiped out soon.
We don’t live in some thick jungle of a third world nation which sees mercenaries carrying out a mission but we are a part of a so called ‘civilized society’ and such shameful behaviour should be rebuked. We are way past imposing fines. Public humiliation is the key to this menace.
I am no sage, I have sinned numerously but sinfully I realized still. I care not how one would react to words for it is known that the bitterest thing is truth.
This is not an exorbitant display of dormant creativity which teased my thoughts to erupt in a deluge of fundamental discoveries related to the society we live in but merely an assessment of what we are. We all know but who cares!
The views are simple for I want even the most ignorant man to understand…even if it’s a bit…by simply scrolling through the collection of words.
This aims not to bring about a change in mindsets for our iron-will in baseless debates is all too strong but to bring about a realization…if at all.