When I first came to Kathmandu, it was a calm and pretty city in many aspects. With time however, I saw the city deteriorating and embodying chaos in all possible ways. The chaos stems out of lack of responsibility that the city’s denizens show.

Kathmandu is getting filthier by the day, and this filth goes beyond the dust and garbage that meet our eyes. The filth, from what I have noticed, lies in and arises from the mindset of the people.

It is of course a human nature to aspire to do better and reach a certain height in life. You, I, and everyone has certain goals, and it is not unhealthy per se. But the problem arises when people acquire selfish means to achieve the goals. It is when people flush good values down the drain to achieve certain things that the society suffers. It is when one conducts activities without paying much attention to what effect they might have on other people around them that the city goes down. 

Unfortunately, Kathmandu is full of people for whom cheating and lying is a regular routine. So many people only look after their own needs. At any point in time you can only think of a handful of people who are sincere, punctual, faithful and caring about the society’s welfare.

In this age of fast track development, Kathmandu could have been a beautiful city, thriving with beautiful values. But thanks to people, at all levels, who lack moral values, the city is in a rut.

What separates us humans from other animals is our ability to separate the good from the bad. We are superior to other animals because of our common sense, but so many people take it for granted and not use this sense at all.

Why are the denizens of Kathmandu so rowdy when they are on the road—constantly honking, overtaking, speeding up, and swearing out loud? Why is it that people always keep their personal property clean but throw their garbage on public property? Why do people climb up their career ladder at the cost of someone else’s career path? Why are we so okay with the fact that literally every single government body is corrupted?

Changing a community is never as difficult as it seems. If only everyone contributed what they could for the betterment of the society, if only everyone did their part in keeping their conscience in place and keeping their surroundings clean—the city would automatically be a better place to live in. If only we refused to give or take bribe, the social system would evolve on its own.

Wagle is a Graduate from Pokhara University