Some time ago, our President Pranab Mukherjee said that the real dirt of India lies not on the streets but in “our minds and in our unwillingness to let go of views that divide society into them and us.” And now, this incident on a Delhi Metro coach proves his statement holds true.

This facebook post by a Haryana resident named ‘Prasanna Karthik’ about an incident he witnessed during his journey on a Delhi metro has been doing rounds on social media. This is what he posted:

“This idiot, along with a female friend of his (the girl in blue dress standing next to him, on whom I deliberately did not focus), where eating inside a Delhi Metro coach. When I reminded them that eating in a Metro coach is prohibited and that they will make the coach dirty, they point blank said… “We have bought tickets and hence can do whatever we want. And if we dirty the place, and if you feel so much for the metro, you can clean it after we finish eating.” Which is when I realized that there is no way I could continue a rational conversation with them. Sadly I couldn’t stop them… No one around raised any objection, which further emboldened them. And as they continued eating, they did spill some sauce and also dropped a piece of chicken, which the person standing next to them stamped on.

How do we ever change such uncouth and parasite like behaviour coming from educated people? More importantly, how do we change our bystander like attitude? And there are also no systemic means to take such idiots to task. Buying a ticket does not mean we misuse public property… It only means we treat it with more responsibility.

India does not stink because of dirty streets. It stinks because of dirty minds.”

India is our country, our home and it is our responsibility to keep it clean and tidy. Our surroundings and our way of life are the impression foreign tourists carry of India. Let each one of us be the other one’s guide and together help keep India clean.