The word ‘citizen’ primarily means a person who lives in a country. Thus every Indian is a citizen of India, whether he lives in a city or a village or elsewhere. Every society has some definite rules of conduct for its members. Some of these rules are laid down as written laws, and whoever breaks any of them is punished by a court of law. There are many unwritten rules which are no less binding on every member of the society.
Peace and happiness of the society depend a good deal upon the proper observance of these rules too. A good citizen takes equal care about these unwritten and written rules of conduct. Many people in our country are careless about the former. We often throw orange and banana skins on the road, collect garbage on the road, encroach upon roads and other government land; and thus spread nuisance. It causes a great inconvenience to others. We waste tap water by leaving the taps open. Some people often wash even the clothes of persons suffering from infectious diseases in ponds from which they draw their drinking water. We see people standing at the entrance of trams and buses even when there is room inside. They do not care the least about the inconvenience this causes to persons in getting down and getting in.
All these common experiences show that we lack in civic sense. A good citizen not only avoids breaking the rules himself, but also sees that they are not broken by others. Whenever we see a person doing any wrong, it is our duty to try to correct him. We should also help the authorities in maintaining law and order and peace for the general happiness of all citizens.
