3 min readNew DelhiApr 27, 2026 05:59 PM ISTThe video captures littering by Mahabalipuram beach (Image source: @homeless.digitalnomad/Instagram)A foreign tourist recently slammed people for casually littering in public places in India. In a reel video, the man, who goes by the account Joey Travels on Instagram, recorded the heavily trashed Mahabalipuram beach in Tamil Nadu.The viral video shows the tourist walking along what he calls the “most trashed beach” he has ever visited. With plastic waste and debris scattered all around him, he criticises the lack of cleanliness and describes the situation as “shameful”.Further, he argues that a common attitude is to view cleanliness as the sole responsibility of the government, rather than a collective civic duty. He highlights that the deeper issue is a matter of mindset, as people are simply not raised to see littering as unacceptable behaviour.Sharing the video, he wrote, “This is shameful. Myth: People aren’t educated about trash in India. Fact: People are taught that littering is bad. Even upper-class Indians litter. They litter because they think that other people should be responsible for picking up their own trash. They think that government programs should be put in place to pick up trash, which is true, but IMO that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t also pick it up.”“Not every state of India is like this. Southwest India is much better when it comes to picking up trash. The minority regions (Ladakh, Sikkim, Mizoram, Nagaland, etc) don’t seem to have a trash problem, despite receiving even less government efforts than the general population,” the caption read.Watch here: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Joey Travels (@homeless.digitalnomad)Also Read | ‘India is like a dopamine injection’: 51-year-old American sells everything, moves to BengaluruThe video has since gone viral, garnering over a million views. “Indian logic: If my house is clean, I don’t care if there’s a big pile of dump outside,” a social media user reacted.“I’m an Indian… And I Absolutely agree 100%. And instead of being offended, we should take it as a constructive criticism and be better,” another user commented.“You can’t imagine the struggle of a handful like us who try to make our fellow citizens realise what you just said. We often end up being laughed at, ridiculed… of course asked to mind our own business. Anyway we aren’t backing down. Thank you for bringing this up,” a third user remarked.Story continues below this adDISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this report highlight personal observations regarding civic habits and environmental concerns; they are not intended as a definitive assessment of any specific region or community. Public hygiene is a shared effort, and readers are encouraged to follow local waste management guidelines to help preserve natural and heritage sites. © IE Online Media Services Pvt LtdTags:litteringsocial media viralsAdvertisementLoading Recommendations...