Civic sense is nearly absent in Rawalpindi

Civic sense is nearly non-existent in our city. Go to a beautiful garden and you will find rotten eatable and dishes of many kinds spread mercilessly on the lawns. People would come for a picnic and leave crumbs of food on the grass and bushes. They hardly feel that there are other people who would like to enjoy a treat given by someone in those very lawns.

“There are small road side restaurants serving tea and eatables. You will find the used plastic, paper and earthen cups and leaf plates spread all around. It is a common sight in our city. No, one minds it,” says Ali Akbar Rizvi, a school teacher.

“Go to anywhere in the city. You will find a number of stalls and shops selling cigarettes. People would smoke and throw the leftover on the roads and streets. People would smoke in buses, restaurants and trains, cinema houses and offices without thinking of the passive smokers (who do not smoke but inhale the smoke when others smoke),” says Amanat Ali Haideri, a social welfare worker.

Asad Abbas, an IT engineer, says: “Streets and lanes in cities have garbage in front of almost all the houses. People would clean their houses and throw away the waste on the street even from the second or third story of the house. It makes the streets dirty. Sweepers are almost absent and this garbage remains in the streets sometimes for days together.”

“Water has become a rare commodity nowadays. The level of underground water is going down. As the population is increasing de­mand of water too is increasing. There is scarcity of water all around. Even rivers and wells are drying. Even then people waste water. If they open a roadside, home or office tap they won’t shut it after using water. It is a common sight wherever the tap,” says Sabir Hussain Syed, a mechanic by occupation.

“There are huge losses in the distribution of electricity in the city. An investigation revealed that a very large number of consumers have electricity in their houses by throwing wire known as Kundi on the electric poles. It is rather stealing electricity. Electricity is stolen by in­dustries too. Even meters are mishandled. This has caused great scarcity of electricity in the areas where it is required,” says Johar Ali Zaidi, a trader.

Khawar Maqbool Hussain, a varsity student, says: “People haven’t the civic sense of allowing the rightful consumers to have electricity. Many localities of the city have a cut of six to seven hours a day during summer season. If one has to be faithful to his country one has to start from acquiring civic sense.”