Students turn vigilantes to instil civic sense

BANGALORE: At a time when the entire nation is clamouring for change, students of Sheshadripuram Commerce College, Magadi Road, are also taking to the streets. Not for an anti-graft crusade or any social revolution. The idea is to instill a sense of civic responsibility among residents of the college’s neighbourhood.For a period of 30 days, four I year B.Com students will conduct a Civic Sense programme to create awareness on Magadi Main Road. Covering nearly 1.5 kms of Magadi Road, the students will observe the civic obedience in all shops and establishments in this area in true vigilante style.“We want to create awareness among residents. The aim is to say that if the people in the area are alert about civic know-how, then there will be an improvement in the area,” said V Mahalakshmi, Principal of the college. The initiative was her brainchild. “I conceived this idea and discussed it with the students. I have handpicked four students for this exercise,” she added. The four students selected for this initiative are also volunteers of the National Cadet Corps (NCC). The action plan includes a 30-day observation that will involve collecting responses of shopkeepers’ on an observation sheet.  “We will scrutinise the data. The observational parameter here is the sense of civic responsibility showed by the residents and shopkeepers,” said Mahalakshmi.The Sheshadripuram Educational Trust (SET) has approved this initiative. In the coming days, a delegation of students from the college will meet the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Commissioner to seek permission to carry out the exercise. “At the end of the programme, we will compile a report based on our observations. We will come up with suggestions for better civic responsibilities. The report will be shared with the BBMP,” she said. Also, the college is planning to issue Certificates of Appreciation to those shops or establishments who have responded positively to suggestions.“We thought it is necessary to seek the permission of BBMP before our students start the programme. This way, the BBMP will be aware about the project, said Mahalakshmi, who is optimistic that the initiative will create an interest among shopkeepers and residents about following civic rules.