LUCKNOW, March 5 -- Vidhan Sabha speaker Satish Mahana has brought the spotlight on a civic issue that is usually put on the back burner but impacts each and every citizen. On Tuesday, he chided an MLA, though he didn't name him, for spitting 'pan masala' or chewing tobacco on the carpet at the entrance of the main Assembly hall.

Gutkha or paan stains on footpaths and public walls have earned the state capital a bad name. More often than not, Lucknow's streets are also littered with biscuit wrappers, leftover food, eggshells, half-eaten fruits and the like.

"When people spit out gutkha and stain a small portion of a wall or road, they also leave behind a permanent scar. In Lucknow, public spaces are treated like open trash cans. People ...