🙈 Top 10 Civic Responsibilities We Forget Every Day

🌍 Why Civic Responsibility Still Matters

We all want clean streets, safe neighbourhoods, and polite people.
But do we really play our part in making that happen?

Civic responsibility isn’t just about voting once every 5 years—it’s about how we behave every single day in society.

"Being a good citizen isn’t about big gestures. It’s in the small, everyday actions we often ignore."

Let’s uncover the top 10 civic responsibilities we forget daily, and how remembering them can shape a better world around us.

✅ 1. Throwing Waste in the Right Place

Sounds obvious, yet:

People toss wrappers from vehicles

Spit in public places

Leave plastic behind at parks and beaches

🧠 Fix it: Carry a small trash bag or hold on to your waste until you find a bin.

✅ 2. Following Traffic Rules

Jumping signals, parking on footpaths, or driving on the wrong side—all small violations that lead to big chaos.

🚦 Ignoring traffic norms isn’t smart. It’s dangerous and selfish.

🧠 Fix it: Treat every signal, signboard, and zebra crossing like you would if your loved ones were watching.

✅ 3. Maintaining Public Hygiene

Spitting on walls

Using public spaces as toilets

Not flushing in public washrooms

These aren’t hygiene mistakes—they’re acts of public disrespect.

🧠 Fix it: Think: “Would I do this in my own home?”

✅ 4. Respecting Public Property

Benches, buses, metro coaches, walls, and park equipment are often:

Scribbled on

Broken

Misused

🧠 Fix it: If it doesn’t belong to you, care for it as if it did. Public property = our property.

✅ 5. Standing in Line

Skipping queues in stations, banks, temples, or counters may save you 5 minutes, but it shows complete disregard for others' time and dignity.

🧠 Fix it: Respect the order. It shows maturity and fairness.

✅ 6. Keeping Noise Under Control

From honking unnecessarily to blasting loudspeakers during festivals, noise pollution is a daily civic offence we normalise.

🧠 Fix it: Lower the volume—literally and figuratively.

✅ 7. Helping Others in Need

We often look away when someone:

Falls in public

Is bullied or harassed

Struggles with a disability

🧠 Fix it: Step in, even if it's just to ask, “Are you okay?” Civic sense includes human sense.

✅ 8. Paying Taxes Honestly

Many dodge taxes or think of it as a burden. But those funds remain:

Roads

Schools

Hospitals

Safety systems

🧠 Fix it: Understand that tax is a contribution, not a punishment.

✅ 9. Being Polite in Public

Basic courtesies are fading:

Saying “thank you” to the service staff

Giving up your seat for someone elderly

Saying “sorry” after bumping into someone

🧠 Fix it: A little politeness can change someone's day—and elevate public behaviour.

✅ 10. Speaking Up Against Injustice

Seeing someone break rules, harass others, or damage property—and saying nothing—is passive participation.

🧠 Fix it: Don’t be aggressive, but don’t stay silent either.
Report, record, or request better behaviour. Your voice matters.

🧾 Bonus: A Quick Recap Checklist

Print it. Share it. Stick it to your wall. Let’s normalise being responsible.

✨ Final Thoughts: Being a Citizen Is a Daily Job

You don’t need to be an activist, politician, or celebrity to make a difference.

Just remembering your civic duties daily—and inspiring one more person to do the same—is enough to change a city, a country, a world.

“If we all do a little, no one has to do a lot.”