The problem with the habit of spitting is that no one really seems to think it is such a big issue after all. This includes the civil authorities, the government and a totally callous public. Right from schools to offices and homes, few even point out to children that spitting is a bad habit. In fact, so ingrained is the habit that it is often encouraged, though unconsciously, as a way to keep the mouth clean. This must change. The problem is not just an aesthetic issue or a subject of city cleaning problems. It is not only confined to health and sanitation but is fast becoming a monumental problem that is also harming the country’s financial systems as well.
The real yawning threat
The habit of spitting in any public space like parks, railway stations or any other commercial area whether it is an industrial mill or a posh corporate office wall compound is not unheard of in India. On the contrary, it seems to be the norm. Red/brown spit-laden roads and walls have become a usual scenario in the country because of spitting. Most people agree that spitting is repulsive, disgusting, and potentially dangerous. One would think it would be a simple matter to legislate against it. But there’s very little that is simple about the relationship between spitting and the law.
Spitting is the most annoying human behaviour, which is also responsible for the wide spread of contagious diseases like Swine Flu, Tuberculosis, Pneumonia and Gastro-Intestinal diseases. There are more chances of diseases spreading in crowded places where people passing by can possibly breathe the bacteria into their lungs.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), TB occurs in every part of the world. In 2011, the largest number of new TB cases occurred in Asia, accounting for 60 per cent of new cases globally. There were about 310,000 cases of MDR-TB amongst notified TB patients with pulmonary TB in the world in 2011. Almost 60 per cent of these cases were in India, China and the Russian Federation. Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is a form of TB caused by bacteria that do not respond to, at least, isoniazid and rifampicin – the two most powerful, first-line (or standard) anti-TB drugs.
The paan masala menace
Chewing betel leaf or paan containing a mixture of betel leaf, areca nut and slaked lime chewed by millions of Indians is an age-old tradition followed since generations. Paan eaters have a habit of spitting a red mixture on roads and walls. This habit was somehow replaced by guthka -- a sweetened mixture of chewing tobacco, betel nut, and palm nut. The mass-produced mix is widely chewed and spat out stains the streets. It is believed that much of the spitting in India is due to chewing tobacco, which generates abundant amounts of saliva.
Many states like Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Bihar, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, and few more have already banned the manufacture, sale and use of guthka as they are found to contain harmful ingredients of tobacco and nicotine, which are responsible for cancer causing and other diseases. However, guthka is still available in the black market, which makes the effectiveness of the ban questionable.
Beyond health, fiscal damage to the nation
Beyond its health effects, the stains of paan masalas and gutkhas are highly corrosive and permanent in nature, which require a lot of water, non-caustic detergents, cleaning equipments and above all manpower. No wonder then that the Howrah Bridge, one of the biggest cantilever structures in the world, which has survived West Bengal's monsoons and a daily flow of huge vehicular traffic, was in the news recently because of the onslaught of gutkha and paan spat out by pedestrians, which is corroding the protective hoods at the base of its pillars.
How India is coping
Last year, while hearing a petition about people being fined for spitting in Mumbai, the Bombay High Court said that "Spitting is an inherent character of our people." The HC had made this observation while hearing a petition challenging the power given by the BMC to Clean-Up marshals to fine offenders. According to the BMC, spitting is one of the most frequent offences that people are fined for. The offenders are fined Rs 200 but most of them refuse to pay it.
The fact that India has a larger rural population that is not aware of urban etiquette is true. But, at the same time it’s very disgraceful to find a young urban Indian spitting from a bus without bothering that it may fall on a nearby pedestrian or scooterist. There are many more people who spit and get away with it. Most of them laugh it off and refuse to pay the fine, or do it from moving buses, trains, or other vehicles. The fact is that the habit starts young as a child by watching elders spitting in the open and is then imbibed in his character.
Also, India being a religious nation, some people try to stick pictures or mount tiles of gods and goddesses on their compound walls or beside their staircases in residential complexes to avoid spitters, who may think twice before spitting. The problem is the lack of civic sense, which must be improved.
Last year, a 53-year old woman, a ‘nuisance detector’ appointed by the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), made headlines when she caught a passerby red handed for spitting on the road and charged him Rs 200 as fine. When he was unable to pay the fine, she made him wash the road with water until the man shamefully rinsed away the evidence. The old woman is one of 25 ‘nuisance detectors’ keeping a watch on passersby every day over offences such as public littering, urinating and bathing on the street. The brave old woman who was found arguing with the offender also complained about the people who are caught spitting and refuse to pay the fine and don’t consider the act something serious. It seems, however, for millions of spitters in the city the ratio of nuisance detectors is pretty less.
Change in attitude
Like the nuisance detectors, hundreds of ‘clean-up marshals’ deployed through private agencies were introduced in 2007 in Mumbai to enforce the cleanliness laws. But, this didn’t go well with the people as these marshals were dogged by allegations of misconduct. Man power alone cannot tackle the problem of spitting. People of India will have to culturally adapt and respect the environment to bring about a change.
The policy makers can think about novel ideas like introducing a concept on similar lines like the dry day concept for liquor, whereby paan and guthka cannot be sold or consumed on particular days. This may keep the roads and the streets clean at least for that day and promote awareness. The change in the attitude of people will take time as it is a gradual process, and all the stakeholders shall have to contribute to its success.
The municipalities across the country are appointing clean up marshals and launching clean India campaigns. But, most of the corporations found that it is very difficult to move ahead without cooperation from its citizens. The ‘Spit Free India’ campaign, one of its kind in the country, which was launched in Pune a few years back, attracted a lot of attention from passersby and concerned citizens, who also participated during the walk. More such campaigns and sustained ones are needed today.
Recently, an angry senior orthopaedic surgeon in Mumbai used the online medium to spread awareness about the hazards of spitting in Bollywood style. He has reworked a popular song from a film ‘Junglee’ and tried to show how diseases spread by spitting in public through the clip which has been shot at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, BMC headquarters and Bandra-Worli Sea Link.
The surgeon opined that a lot of people want to raise their voice against the system. But, they don’t know how to and are not sure if authorities will address their grievances. Since most urban people are technologically savvy today, he chose the online medium by translating his experience in a parody of Shammi Kapoor’s ‘Junglee’ on YouTube.
Preventive education
Although many cleanliness regimes have been taught in schools to kids and many health programmes are being organised by health officials in India, the situation has not improved. This is despite the fact that the health officials have been distributing anti-TB posters and leaflets containing simple pictorial warnings against spitting and openly coughing.
Unfortunately, this measure may not be as effective as it may not reach the masses, as most people find it difficult to connect with the ideas. Moreover, the conventional ‘do not spit’ signs that are displayed at railway stations or other public places may even encourage new spitters taking pleasure in breaking the laws. Experts warn that if we keep communicating that a lot of people spit, it becomes a norm and hence acceptable. Also, funny cartoons of people spitting makes it appear frivolous and amusing and not a serious problem.
Beyond class barriers
As against general notion, spitting is not only common in the lower classes, but this habit can be found even in the higher classes. According to experts, the spraying of saliva in the public domain crosses class barriers, though it is more predominant in the lower middle class. Even the elite roll down their windows to spit callously on the road.
Cultural concerns and law
History reveals that spitting has been a habit in many Asian cultures, and the only way to fight it is by the enactment of laws and effective enforcement. The circumstances may be pollution, addiction to chewing habits, and it is not unusual for them to spit the contents out indiscriminately. Given such cultural habits, the authorities have recognised that the first step towards eliminating the problem is to introduce laws.
In this regard, various states in India have in the recent past introduced laws to combat, inter alia, spitting. One example includes the West Bengal Prohibition of Smoking and Spitting and Protection of Health of Non-smokers and Minors Act 2001. Goa appears to have been the first Indian state to introduce prohibitory laws against spitting in 1999.
Internationally there are laws that were enforced ages ago but there is still an increased need of public awareness towards unhygienic and unacceptable social behaviour.
According to Kala Anandarajah from Rajah Tann - a law firm in Singapore and Southeast Asia - spitting laws have been in the Singapore law books since the early 1900s, but it was only in 2003 that even more strict enforcement was introduced since it was seen that even in one of the world’s cleanest cities, citizens were still trying to hedge and avoid the law.
Making violators pay
From July to December 2011, Mumbaikars paid around Rs 2.24 crore in fines for spitting, and, the 1.1 lakh people fined is not even the tip of the iceberg. According to the health officials, every day, lakhs of people get away with this anti-social and harmful habit, which may welcome a host of serious diseases that are spread via droplets released by patients coughing, sneezing or spitting.
Individual efforts: The beach example
It’s the individual effort that is responsible for the change. If an individual ensures that he won’t harm the environment and keep his surroundings clean, it will surely impact the society. The Panambur beach, which was turned into a private beach, near Mangalore is a classic example.
Yathish Bykampady, 46-year old chief executive officer of Panambur Beach Tourism Development Project, sent a proposal to Maheshwar Rao to manage the beach privately, on a 10-year contract period to the project with a condition of renewing it every five years based on performance.
Post September 2008, Panambur beach, now in private control, has returned to its original pristine form, deviod of filth and muck. With the staff keeping an eagle eye on the public and the ban of cigarettes and guthka on the beach all litter was promptly put in the bin. The result was that there were no more spit stains or cigarette stubs to be found anywhere. While this remains an individual’s campaign, this has to be replicated on an institutional level across the country.
Conclusion
A combination of laws with strict enforcement of the same and changing cultural norms seem the only solution for ensuring a cleaner environment. Besides, the public enforcement, workers and employers should also take stern measures to ensure that hygiene and cleanliness is maintained in every office or factory premises.
However, the final word lies with society, implementation of legislation and creation of infrastructure that places spittoons and bins where people can spit. The issue will not be resolved in a vacuum. It's not easy to tell society to simply clam up and not spit. Designated boxes and spittoons have to be placed first where they can spit. Simultaneously, education has to be imparted that indiscriminate spitting is simply bad manners and legally unacceptable as well.
In the Delhi Metro it has changed solely because the laws are strict and a good infrastructure is in place. There is no reason it will not work elsewhere.