Any lasting edifice needs a solid foundation which is maintained, strengthened and improved, over time. For Nation building, it is National pride which propels the societal engine.
The the biggest driver of true pride in our case, outside of a great national vision, comes from the basics of cleanliness – clean air, water and land (the right to life) – which nature had bestowed on us in plenty across our country which in the name of development, we have been systematically destroying. The nation then needs to build on health and economics, to gain self-respect and the respect of others as it creates its edifice
The Manifestation of the Issue:
Unbreathable air, filth on the roads in our cities, villages and even out in nature, water bodies which are more sewage channels or reservoirs, abound. If we would not tolerate any of this in our homes, or in the homes we visit, why would we allow any of this in our Nation, which is our greater home?
An AQI (Air quality index is a measure of air pollution across particulate matter of PM 2.5 and PM10, as also noxious gases of Methane, SO2, NO2, and Ozone of 300+deemed as very poor is now seen to be tolerable in our capital city, causing respiratory illnesses and of greater concern to those with compromised lung or heart conditions.
On 30th May 2024 Singapore recorded an AQI of 30, London 2.5 and Haridwar 125, as did Pusa in Delhi (which goes off the charts in Winter), and Mumbai 112. Not to belabor the point but a 2023 report of the world’s most polluted cities from an air quality index standpoint had 42 of the top 50 cities from India, of which 15 were from the Greater National Capital Region.
I don’t think I need to highlight the purposeful drying up of water bodies either by land mafia, or their use as sewage dumps, nor is a reminder required to overflowing, toxic, smoking official city landfills and the open garbage all over our cities/towns and villages. Even where it is clean, you can see filth behind the scrub.
And no amount of economic growth, and ease of doing business, can have us swelling with pride if we and our business partners in this country are gasping for breath, and we are holding our noses with the stench ….. as each hits our self-pride and national pride.
Fixing the root cause:
We need to make a start with a bit of attitude enforcement, penal measures with no exceptions to line pockets outside our homes, on a street and public places emulate examples of people making clean spaces a normal thing. This fuels a virtuous cycle building societal norms, reducing the need for any governmental enforcement.
With Swachh Bharat we have made a beginning. Now is the time to set the bar really high (because we can) and aim not for a pass mark with a third division, but for a sea change in this area (because that’s what we do in each of our homes – no matter the income levels).
That would rid us of a major stigma of being one of the dirtiest countries, with most of the top 25 polluted cities in the world, and start building a great foundation of national pride.
This is not something that the Government can mandate and make happen from tomorrow. This is more like a movement which has to start from within each of us, our homes, communities, lanes, gardens and villages, coupled with the support of the Government to help scale up swiftly.
Let’s see how we can refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle, replenish as consumers and families to help start creating an Awesome Swachh Bharat.
Simple things that we can do more of from today:
l Reduce plastic and paper bags – Use own bags for grocery shopping
lRefill own bottles of water and reduce plastic bottles
l Recycle waste with segregation of plastic and paper and metal waste
l Pass on old clothes to those in need, Hand down children’s clothes
l Avoid burning of twigs, check your vehicles emissions, generator emissions, start using solar energy where possible, fewer longer trips
l Replenish the soil by composting kitchen waste – it’s very simple
l Set an example in your neighborhood
l Don’t throw litter on the roads, out of your car etc
l And add in and spread your other actions
Air Water Earth – Towards and AWEsome Swachh Bharat
As an individual or a group of individuals, perhaps with our ward councilor or our association or….. we could perhaps do something simple to inspire.
One really clean street in a city or make our village really clean and the envy of others. And then with some local media support perhaps grow this into a Cleanest Village in a Taluka contest with
l Not a single piece of plastic or trash on the street/road
l A litter box of some sort to throw trash which is collected by the system for trashing appropriately
l No defecation/smell
l No spitting/staining of walls/roads
l No broken tiles/loose wires etc for a safe walking path on the sides and no ditches on the road
l Acid test – Able to walk barefoot on the road etc.
Then add in a layer towards a clean pond, lake, stream, and river
l No untreated sewage going into the same
l No plastic/trash anywhere in the water or around
l Acid test – Fish healthy enough for fishing and water clean enough for locals to swim in
Then add in a layer towards a clean ward
l No dusty sides of roads or construction sites (grassed up to prevent dust)
l No garbage being burnt, no twigs and leaves being burnt
l No 2, 4 or 6 wheelers spewing out exhaust beyond specs
l Local composting started, to feed the fields, parks and nurseries
l A few new saplings planted along the roads or in a park
l No trash on the roads/lanes, no smelly sewers
Building National pride starts with each one of us residents as an equal share holder, supported by Government, Industry, Media and the many institutions which make a nation.
We can then expect a huge growth in tourism both local and international, a great increase in business travel and FDI, more likelihood of international events being hosted in India and an ever more sustained growth of incomes coupled with lower inequalities, building a sense of pride in cleanliness and quality.
Rahul Salim Verghese – Acceleration Partner for Start Ups and Pollution Solution Businesses
Facebook – To a brighter future