NEW DELHI: Across India, behaviours such as littering, spitting, flouting queues, honking needlessly, encroaching on public spaces, and damaging shared property have become so routine that they often pass without notice.They are not merely behavioural glitches; they are embedded, inherited patterns. The problem is not just policy, enforcement, or infrastructure. It is about mindsets passed quietly from one generation to the next, shaping how we view shared spaces and each other.These visuals are perhaps the way of life for many Indians: a man flinging garbage from his car window; a commuter spitting paan from a moving train; a woman stealing blankets from railway compartments; adults teaching children to urinate on roadsides even when public toilets are nearby.
Why do these instances not shock us?
The story of an unruly passenger urinating on a co-passenger aboard an Air India flight shocked the nation. But is it really shocking in a country where public walls are routinely marked with fresh stains of neglect?As Kanchan Yadav puts it, “Just the other day I wanted to stop a man and ask him to show some basic civic sense instead of casually peeing in the open. But somehow, in this country, people seem far more offended by kissing in public than by pissing in public. Whether you’re at a bus stand, outside a shop, or just walking past any public space, the most uncomfortable sight is men relieving themselves anywhere they want. They turn entire corners mushy, filthy and unbearable, assaulting your olfactory like a crime scene.““We keep calling our country motherland and talk so proudly about Mother Nature, but do we really have the civic sense to keep this ‘mother’ clean and safe?” she added.We as a society lack basic civic sense. Why? Is it poor education? Weak enforcement? Overpopulation? A scarcity mindset? Or simply a general belief that public spaces are ‘not our problem?’The answer, like the problem, is layered.Much of our public discourse around India’s livability focuses on government action: policy, policing, infrastructure, budgets. But a nation’s quality of life is equally, if not more, defined by its people.Ayush Pandey reflected these sentiments as he narrated an incident from his childhood. “What I vividly remember from my childhood is travelling in general compartments of trains. Back then, as a four or five-year-old, my mother would sometimes make me urinate out of the train window. At that age, I obviously did not understand the difference between relieving myself in public and using a proper washroom — I only remember it as something done for convenience during travel,” he said.“As I grew old enough to understand the idea of private versus public spaces, I don’t remember doing it again. Until a certain age, this responsibility lies completely with parents, and I believe many children have experienced similar moments on highways or at railway stations,” Pandey added.While he admitted that most civic issues emerge from poor infrastructure, Ayush added that many cases are mere examples of laziness. He said, “Civic sense is not just something expected from adults — it is basic courtesy and awareness. Still, we often see grown men urinating in public without hesitation, as if it is their right instead of walking to the nearest restroom. According to me, many Indians have developed a habit: if they can avoid walking even 200–300 steps, or if a washroom is not easily accessible, they simply look left and right — and relieve themselves in the open.“
Going viral for all the wrong reasons
A city with spotless streets and smooth traffic can be ruined in days if citizens refuse to cooperate. And yet, even a modest city can become pleasant if its people practice discipline and collective responsibility.Consider this: In just the first three months of this year, the Eastern Railway collected over Rs 32 lakh in fines from people spitting across railway stations in Kolkata. And this is just one zone of one railway system in one part of the country. Imagine the true nationwide scale.Or take another recurring story: passengers stealing railway blankets, pillows, taps, mugs and even fans. These are not acts of poverty-driven desperation. Often, they are simply opportunistic and shameless—small acts that collectively damage India’s reputation and weaken public services.Then there are examples from the other side—moments that feel like a slap of irony. In Gurugram, a group of foreign nationals recently organized a cleanliness drive, clearing roads and drains and urging residents to keep the surroundings outside their homes and shops clean.The sight of foreigners cleaning Indian streets while locals walk by unfazed speaks volumes about our civic apathy.These examples do not mean Indians are inherently careless. Rather, they show what happens when generations grow up without structured civic education, without consistent enforcement, and without cultural emphasis on responsibility for shared spaces.
1. Broken Windows Theory
In 1982, Wilson and Kelling proposed the now famous Broken Windows Theory: if a broken window is left unrepaired, it signals that more damage will not cost anything. Disorder invites more disorder.India’s streets are a perfect case study. A clean street invites caution. A dirty street becomes a public dustbin. The moment someone sees a pile of garbage on the curb, the brain goes ‘Arre yahan sab phenk rahe hain—main bhi dal deta hoon.’ Children observe this too. When they see adults casually littering, they internalise it as ‘normal behaviour.’ With time, this turns into a collective moral numbness: If the environment is already dirty, what difference will my one wrapper make?This is how individual choices compound into national outcomes.Environmentalist Vimlendu Jha believes the problem lies both at policy and individual level. “It is a behavioural problem when someone says ‘chalta hai’ while throwing a wrapper outside their car but the same individual won’t do so abroad. Forget America, you will not find litter even in Delhi metro. But you will find the railway station across that metro station dirty, the adjoining streets and markets dirty.”“If littering is naturally coming to me, why is this behavior not showing when I take the metro? Why is the New Delhi Metro Station cleaner than New Delhi Railway station? This talks volumes of both the norms and the laws that are being followed,” said Jha. “I don’t believe littering is part of our DNA as Indians. We are not dirty by design. We work on convenience, we believe in taking shortcuts when no one is watching and the same Indian behaves differently in another country.“
2. The Scarcity Mindset
Generations of Indians have lived in an environment where resources—jobs, seats, houses, promotions, rations—were limited. This created a deeply rooted scarcity mindset: If you don’t rush, push, grab, or seize, someone else will take your seat.This mindset spills into daily behaviour:– pushing into trains before passengers have exited– jostling for space in queues– rushing into elevators without letting people out– honking aggressively– breaking traffic rules, overspeedingEven among the affluent, this scarcity attitude persists. It is not about poverty; it is about conditioning. The result is a society where individual urgency trumps collective order, where personal convenience often matters more than mutual respect.
3. Lack of Strict Enforcement
Another major factor is the disconnect between rules and consequences.In India, rules are often seen as suggestions, not obligations. Why? Because breaking them rarely brings consequences.People see influential individuals—politicians, celebrities, senior bureaucrats—violating rules with impunity: driving on the wrong side of the road, avoiding fines, intimidating enforcement authorities, or using privilege to bypass regulations.This teaches the public two dangerous lessons:– Rules apply only to the powerless.-Breaking rules is fine as long as you don’t get caught.Children absorb this quickly. They see their parents bragging about how they avoided a challan (fine), or how a jugaad (hack) helped them bypass a procedure. They learn that bending rules is not just acceptable—it is admired.Thus, a culture develops where accountability is weak, and civic sense becomes optional rather than essential.
4. Public Spaces Are ‘Nobody’s Responsibility’
A fundamental misconception in India is that public spaces belong to the government, not the people.‘This is not my property’ becomes ‘I don’t need to take care of it.’So we litter on beaches, damage train seats, spit on walls, break public taps, vandalise monuments, scribble names on heritage structures—all because we subconsciously feel these spaces belong to nobody (or “the government”), and therefore to everyone in a way that excuses neglect.In Scandinavian countries, Japan, or Singapore, public spaces are treated as collective property—extensions of one’s home. In India, public spaces are treated as expendable.
5. Overburdened Infrastructure and Population Pressure
Even the most civic-minded citizen struggles in an environment where infrastructure is inadequate:– garbage bins are scarce– footpaths are encroached– public toilets are dirty– traffic systems are chaotic– drainage systems fail in monsoons
6. Social Hierarchies Reinforce Poor Behaviour
Another difficult truth: civic sense is tied to how we treat people we consider ‘lesser.’Many Indians behave respectfully in five-star hotels, airports, or foreign countries—but act very differently in markets, bus stations, and public offices. Why? Because we treat certain spaces, and certain people, as ‘inferior,’ not worth respecting.The presence of hierarchies—class, caste, gender—distorts our public behaviour:– yelling at sanitation workers, domestic helpers– ignoring queues when domestic helpers are standing in them– bargaining with vegetable-sellers, autorickshaw drivers– honking at pedestrians as if they are obstaclesWithout equality, civic sense withers.
Schools, parents prioritise grades, not building responsible citizens
For decades, civic education in India has been treated as a formality — light textbook chapters, boring diagrams, no real-world application. Schools focus on exams, not on building socially responsible citizens. Parents often prioritise grades, not behaviour in public spaces. And children learn most strongly not from books, but from what they see adults do.When a child sees a parent throw garbage on the street, it becomes normal. When a child watches elders jump queues, bribe officials, break traffic rules, talk down to domestic workers, or misuse public property, it creates a blueprint for adulthood.“Environment education should not be treated as a subject to score marks. It is a lifestyle choice at the end of the day with clear implications on our lives and culture. We really need to enforce that value system. Environment education paradigm has to shift from just mere knowledge which is information based vs value and action based,” said Jha.And these habits persist because public behaviour is contagious. Which brings us to the first root cause.Can this change? Yes. But it starts young.India eradicated diseases like Polio through mass awareness and coordinated action. Civic behaviour can be transformed the same way—with a structured, nation-wide effort involving schools, parents, media, and community institutions.And the most crucial piece of this change is children.Children are still forming values. They observe, absorb, and imitate. If given the right guidance, they can reshape the cultural norms that adults have broken.Role of schoolsSchools must treat civic sense not as a textbook chapter but as a core part of learning:– daily cleanliness rituals– community outreach programs– traffic rule workshops– waste segregation practices– field visits to understand sanitation and water management– compulsory social responsibility modulesRole of parentsParents must lead by example:– no littering– following queues– treating workers with dignity– obeying traffic rules– stop flexing ‘jugaads’ in front of childrenChildren learn civic sense from what they see, not what they are told.Role of MediaAdvertisements, influencers, films, and social media campaigns can normalise good behaviour the way they normalise trends. Positive peer pressure works better than moral lectures.What Improvement Looks Like – Small, Visible ActsWhen civic sense improves, it won’t happen in grand gestures. It will happen in:– a driver stopping before a zebra crossing– a child refusing to litter– a shopkeeper keeping his storefront clean– neighbours cooperating in waste segregation– a commuter asking another not to spit– a tourist complimenting Indians over discipline– a railway coach that remains clean after a long journeyCivic sense is not theoretical. It’s practical, everyday discipline that builds a collective culture.A New Civic Movement Is NeededToday, India stands as one of the largest economies and one of the most influential global powers. Yet, the basics— public cleanliness, traffic discipline, respect for common spaces — lag far behind.If we want to become a truly developed society, civic sense must be reimagined as a moral responsibility, a cultural value, a national priority and a daily habit.We have the ingenuity, the youth power, the technological tools, and the community strength to transform our civic culture. What we need is intention.The responsibility lies with all of usIndia’s lack of civic sense is not an unchangeable flaw. It is the result of years of neglect, inconsistent education, overcrowded cities, poor enforcement, and inherited habits. But every habit can be unlearned. Every culture can evolve. Every generation can do better than the last.Just as we took pride in eradicating Polio, we can take pride in building a cleaner, more respectful, more disciplined India.The responsibility lies with all of us—parents, teachers, leaders, citizens—and especially the children who will inherit this country. Because at the end of the day, a nation is not made great by its government. It is made great by its people.
