BANGALORE: ‘Ugly Indians’ are no more an unknown group in Bangalore city now. Although anonymous in its identity, their actions speak aloud. They believe that names and identities of specific individuals are not important. What matters is visible results.
They are a civic group with a mission of “spot-fixing” the garbage menace each week in the city. Till date, they have fixed more than 100 spots that include Church Street, M G Road, Brigade Road and Tavarekere. The group consists of like-minded people of the 25-40 age group, which feels strongly about the state of visible filth present across the city.
They describe their philosophy as: “Kaam chalu mooh bandh or Stop Talking, Start Doing.” Due to their continuous good work, the group has been nominated for the ‘Namma Bengaluru Award 2012’.
The mission began more than a year ago and as far as funds are concerned, they are neither collecting funds from any government agency nor looking for any sponsor. They only clear the garbage dump in and around the city and as a bonus, even paint the area and decorate it with plants and flower pots.
The website of Ugly Indian states: “We believe in direct action, with a commonsense problem-solving approach. We do not finger-point or blame the system. We aim to make a change from within — one that sustains because everyone wants it and is comfortable with it.We believe that there is no magic wand, or silver bullet, to solve India’s civic problems. We are realists, and accept that many of India’s problems are hard to solve even if the government and public work closely together and money was freely available.”
The website further states: “Of our many civic problems, we view the problem of visible filth on our streets as a behaviour and attitude problem that can be solved in our lifetime. This can be achieved without spending money or changing legislation or systems. It requires coming up with smart ideas to change people’s rooted cultural behaviour and attitudes. And, making sure those ideas work.”
The initiatives of Ugly Indian will soon erase the name of Bangalore from the list of dirtiest cities in the country. If you also want to make a change and join ‘Ugly Indians’, do write to theuglyindian@gmail.com. You never know when we can come across them, as The ‘Ugly Indians’ are active on roads and common places. They work on holidays too. The members of this group stand as an example for many. It teaches Bangaloreans that complaining and nagging about issues are bygone days and that it is time for some action by the citizens.