Spitting in public is not your birthright!

Spitting in public comes naturally to our shameless majority who think they have the right to do so freely. It has become a way of life for them! Be it our famous paan or mucus laced with phlegm, its hit every ground, each wall, each corridor of offices, cinema halls, government departments and other public places! I haven't had the privilege to visit any public property yet without the absence of compulsive spitting culprits! 

Spitting in public is an offense and must be dealt with seriously. But so far all the public awareness initiatives taken up by the government to educate the masses have all gone in vain. How can this nasty habit be curbed!  

The covid-19 pandemic has been another timely eye opener, but does that mean spitting will ever end in our country? There is no better time than now. Wake up India!  It's difficult to travel even 1km without having to come across 10 people or more spitting on the road.

Fines should be levied instantly on people found spitting, traffic signals could be a good start. Such culprits should be caught and tracked on camera and shamed in media. They should have to pay a heavy fine and temporarily be punished by surrendering their vehicle and licenses. Spitting should be considered as serious and dangerous as not wearing a helmet! Let's grab this spitting population at locations with camera's first, it should bring about some sense of responsibility and hygiene as a starter. 

Singapore slaps spitters with a fine of straight $1,000 if caught spitting in public places. China fines $70 to those who spit & refuse to clean their sputum! They have also set up cameras in the streets to specially capture public spitting. It’s high time to enforce this offense effectively in India and take necessary actions to reform our social habits. 

I do not support designated spittoons as well! The idea of it is gross! Think about what goes behind the process of cleaning them! No one must be put through this unnecessary torture! It's inhumane! It will take us decades to get technology to clean this up in every corner of every city and village. People must carry around their personal spit pouches and spit as much as they like only in them and dispose it off safely at their homes or in a proper designated garbage bin. 

Criticize people with full power if you find them spitting on the road or hurting our public property. Scream your lungs out if need be! It may not make a difference instantly, but if we collectively start doing this it is possible! The generations to come will learn it right the first time and thank us. 

If this spitting issue is not addressed as seriously as the vaccination drive, all of it could be a waste of our leanings in this pandemic. Let’s join hands and make a change to bring about a healthy environment where we paint the nation red, but only with pride! 

Our public spaces can do without such art!