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Swachh Bharat(Clean India): A comparison with Japan



 On 2nd October, 2014  Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi launched Swachh Bharat Abhiyan(Campaign Clean India) to clean the streets, roads and infrastructure of the country. Government nominated 9 prominent personalities to propagate the campaign of Swachh Bharat. The endeavor is to clean India by 2019.
Who  wants to live in filthiness?. Nobody. I went to Tokyo to attend a conference, a couple of weeks before PM Narendra Modi visited Japan. I was mesmerized after seeing perfectly cleaned roads, streets. It was difficult even to find a piece of paper somewhere on the streets. Let me give you some contrasting figures comparing India and Japan broadening the perspective.

We are almost 9 times in area and population than Japan, but the density of people per sq km is almost the same which means that countries are comparable.  Although GDP (PPP) of India is 1.5 times that of Japan, but per capita GDP ratio is still 0.04. The per capita income ratio of India to Japan is 0.15 which indicates that India is lacking much behind the "Land of the Rising Sun". Despite the fact that Indian GDP is increasing at growth rate which is close to 4 times that of Japan, but matching with the standards of Japan's per capita GDP is a nightmare. One can definitely argue that there is no point in making comparisons with a country which is already developed these figures are irrelevant for the Indian scenario, but what is the problem in setting the goal by taking the example of someone else who has already done the same job much earlier. I am not criticizing my own country, but just try to emphasize that there is a lot of scope for improvement  and amelioration. The success of the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) is the perfect example to showcase that we are better than anyone else in the world and if we decide on something then we will not stop till we accomplish.

In my opinion, any country cannot be restructured without changing the behavior or mindset of the people living in. Government can frame the policies and try their best to implement them, but if it fails to reach the core, change the behavior, nothing will going to change. Japan has strict rules for disposing trash. In Tokyo, trash has to be divided into three categories (combustible trash, non-combustible trash, recyclable trash) for proper disposal. Each category is collected separately on a designated day.  While all of this may sound like a royal pain, it’s actually not that bad once you get used to it. Also, once you’ve learned how to handle your trash properly, you’ll start to see changes in how your neighbors look at you. Even I also got used to handling my trash like this during my short stay of 7 days, but it was sad to say that the routine was limited to 7 days only (feeling ashamed).
All of this may sound a little bit riotous but remember you are the visitor, this is really a serious issue. When you’re in a foreign country you will run into lots of things that seem a bit weird or don’t quite make sense. However, if you respect those things, you will be treated with respect in turn.
There are many other things or I should say behavior, which anyone travelling in such countries should take back home, which includes following all the traffic rules encompassing pedestrians, train running at times, standing in queues, people reaching offices in time and most importantly women safety. You can easily spot women hovering fearlessly in the streets during the night, even after 12 which is almost impossible in the case of India.

Change in the thinking and mindset of people cannot come in a few days or a couple of years. It will take time and sometimes may be a generation, but the change should come for the betterment. In India only 36% of people have access to improved sanitation facilities compared to 100% in Japan, 65% in China, 59% in Indonesia, 48% in Pakistan, 57% in Bangladesh and surprisingly 92% in Sri Lanka..A series of research studies have shown that 40% of the households which have access to toilets had at least one family member not using it. Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in this regard holds many expectations of the people in India. The government says behavior will change if everything goes according to plan. Although feasibility will be judged after 3-4 years (Vision of 'clean India' by 2nd October 2019, the 150th birthday of Mahatma Gandhi), it won't be flourishing if we solely depend on celebrities chosen to spread the idea. Another major achievement is the recent introduction of an electronic monitoring system to keep a track on the attendance records of Govt. employees at attendance.gov.in. If you have been to Govt. offices and faced some trauma then this step will prove to be fruitful as at least it will bring some fear in the mind of bureaucrats.

These small small steps helps will help India building in powerful and responsible nation. Every citizen has to deliver his own part and change the mindset that the whole India is mine, not only my own home, but the whole India and we have to keep the country sacred.

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