bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

At a bus stop in south Mumbai, a man hawks loudly before expelling a mouthful of saliva into the road without a second thought - but unfortunately for him, the spit inspector is watching.
Rajeshree Rajaram Kamble, a 53-year-old grandmother dressed in a flowery tunic with matching blue shawl and trousers, strides towards her prey and firmly requests a fine of 200 rupees (HK$29.50).
The man appears surprised by her finger-waggling admonishment, and says he does not have any money on him.
"You can wash it away," Kamble retorts, marching him to a nearby sugarcane juice stall to get some water. "If you don't wash it, then you can take off your clothes and clean it."
The man is still reluctant and their row gets heated. Onlookers pause to watch as voices are raised. "Sorry is not enough!" Kamble insists, until the man sheepishly relents.
For Kamble, it is all part of the job. "Everyday I fight with people," she said. "Nobody is interested in paying the fine."
Working for the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), she is one of 25 "nuisance detectors" taking on adults every day over offences, such as public littering, urinating and bathing on the street.
In such a dirty and overcrowded city, Kamble faces an uphill battle, but refuses to admit defeat against habits such as spitting, which health experts believe may help to spread tuberculosis.
"Every time I see someone spitting … my blood boils and I get very angry," said Kamble.
Spitting in a public place, unless a spittoon is provided, is banned under a 2006 Mumbai byelaw. But across the country, many Indians spit regularly at street corners, out of car windows, and even inside buildings.
In a boost for the anti-spit brigade, Maharashtra state - of which Mumbai is the capital - has banned "gutka", a mass-produced mix of nuts, tobacco and lime, among other ingredients, which is widely chewed and spat out, staining the streets.
Raja Narasimhan, who set up the Spit Free India Campaign, says it is a widespread problem. "Even people driving a Mercedes roll down the window and spit."
The 200 rupee fine is more than a day's pay for some Mumbai citizens, and in the year to July, roughly 170,000 spitting penalties were collected in the city, according to MCGM.


Anti-spitting army fine India's foul-mouthed

Nuisance detector Rajeshree Rajaram Kamble in action. Photo: AFP

News

Asia

Mumbai cracks down on rife dirty habit that can spread tuberculosis and is unhygienic


Anti-spitting army fine India's foul-mouthed

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Mumbai cracks down on rife dirty habit that can spread tuberculosis and is unhygienic

Mumbai cracks down on rife dirty habit that can spread tuberculosis and is unhygienic