By: Trends DeskNew Delhi | December 26, 2025 09:43 PM IST 3 min readJust hours after the inauguration of Lucknow’s Rashtra Prerna Sthal on Thursday, the road leading to the national memorial complex was stripped of its decorative flower pots, with videos of the incident quickly spreading across social media.The clips, which surfaced soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other dignitaries departed, appeared to show people stopping along the route to take away the flower pots placed for the ceremony. Most were seen arriving on two-wheelers, loading the pots and driving off, while others simply carried them away by hand.An official from the Lucknow Development Authority’s horticulture department later confirmed to NDTV that over 4,000 flower pots had gone missing. In addition to the plants, cutouts of Prime Minister Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were also reportedly taken away.The prime minister was in the city to inaugurate the Rashtra Prerna Sthal on the 101st birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The event was attended by Defence Minister and Lucknow MP Rajnath Singh, UP Governor Anandiben Patel, and Adityanath.Watch the video:People were seen stealing flower pots in Lucknow after the PM’s program concluded.Not an uncommon sight in India and explains why municipalities remove flower pots once events end. Ironically, those stealing them are usually not poor but from economically sound households. pic.twitter.com/qTcJX8LLrT— THE SKIN DOCTOR (@theskindoctor13) December 26, 2025Also Read | NRI returns to India after 8 years, triggers debate over costs, quality of life and ‘amazing energy’The video went viral with over two lakh views, and many took to the comments to share their opinions on it. A user wrote, “Development isn’t just infrastructure; it’s behaviour. Civic sense is the real soft power we still need to build.”Another user commented, “Once a wise man said: Country doesn’t progress because the govt is good. Countries make progress when citizens make it work.”A third person added, “It’s not a lack of money, it’s a lack of mindset. As long as public property is seen as ‘free stuff,’ development will remain limited to stages and events.”A fourth individual added, “Its not just the civic sense… also the selfish mindset developed in the society which doesn’t think of the country or society as a whole.” © IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd