This city is my home. I was born here, I grew up here, found love here. It is here, I learnt to walk, it is here I got my first job. However, the Bangalore of my childhood is long gone. Bangalore of yore was different from what it is now. There were fewer vehicles on the roads, people were friendly and warm, evenings out with family was a daily affair and everybody found happiness in small things. Now, the city has become dirtier, the roads are clogged with vehicles, trees and parks have given way to piles of garbage, old buildings have been broken down to build skyscrapers. The irony is that the same people who were once proud to be called Bangaloreans, now wrinkle their nose when they see garbage lying around or potholes. Who is responsible for the condition of the city today? It is me — the Bangalorean. What do you do when your house gets dirty? Do you clean it or crib about it being dirty? Whose responsibility is it to make the city better. It is ours. Blaming the government will not get us anywhere. If we have problems, we need to address them. If there is garbage outside our house, we need to clean it up and then educate our neighbours about waste segregation. I have often seen that most of us have intense dinner table conversations about traffic, garbage, potholes. But when it comes to us, we do what we feel like. Where has all the garbage come from? It is from our own house. We are the culprits and we have no right to complain.
I know, the commercialisation has taken what Bangalore was known for. But the city has to grow, we have to progress. With time, we too should be open to change and not complain about it. If we want the lost glory to be restored, then we will have to leave the comforts of our homes and take responsibility of our actions.
(The reader is a resident of Jayanagar)