'Swachh Bharat' effect! Over 100 jailed, fined for urinating in public

Lucknow, June 27: You must not have heard this news ever before in India. Giving out the message loud and clear that tough action will now be taken against all those who will make public places dirty, Government Railway Police of Agra division has punished 109 persons.

Reportedly, all these violators had to spent 24 hours in the jail after they were found urinating in the railway property, including platform and tracks. Not only that, they all had to cough up a fine of Rs 100 to Rs 500(depending upon the magnitude of their crime) for the same.

This hard action was taken after senior superintendent of police(SSP), GRP, Gopeshnath Khanna had ordered his men to take stock of the cleanness drive at Railways sites. It pained Khanna to see that people hardly think twice before spitting in every nook and corner especially at Railway stations.

According to a TOI report, a team led by Khanna started this drive to nab these culprits red handed. The drive was conducted across 12 stations of GRP, Agra division. 109 people were caught in the drive which continued for 48 hours.

When asked about this applaud-able move, Khanna was quoted by the newspaper saying, "In a special drive conducted at several stations of Agra division, including Agra Cantt, Agra Fort, Idgah, Raja Ki Mandi and Tundla, 10​9​ men were sent to jail for 24 hours​ and were penalized up to Rs 500 for urinating in public places on railway properties in front of women and children"

Khanna maintains that the initiative is a part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Swachh Bharat' campaign. On asking about in what section offenders were all punished, enior superintendent of police said, "They were charged under Section 34 of the Police Act (Punishment for certain offences such as inconvenience, annoyance to passengers or residents in public places, roads, etc)".

Feeling good about his praiseworthy move, the SSP further asserted, "The message behind such a drive is to convey people, that enough is enough. For more than six decades, our adamant social behavior has not changed. This city hosts millions of tourist every year, we just can't be negligent and irresponsible when comes to showing etiquettes in public fora".

OneIndia News