Urbanisation in India takes many ugly shapes – from the overflowing gutter filled with plastic bags to the garbage dump that spills over its confines into the street, from the bumper-to-bumper traffic that stifles our daily commute to the power cuts that asphyxiate us in the tepid summer heat.

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Ironically, unlike in the developed world, where the problems of poverty were replaced by the problems of wealth, in India both exist side by side.

Thus thanks to our abysmal sanitary infrastructure, we have not controlled the infectious diseases such as dengue, cholera and encephalitis, which are still on the rampage in our teeming overcrowded cities, while on the other hand we have also inherited the problems of the developed world in the form of increasing stress, hypertension, heart disease and pollution-related lung conditions. As Indians, we are therefore caught in a ‘worst of both worlds scenario’, one that needs to be addressed urgently.

First and foremost, we need to step back and look closely at ourselves and our lives. We need to realise that to a large extent we feed in to or contribute to the issues that make urban life stressful and unpleasant.

The next time we toss an empty wrapper on the road, leave a light or fan on when we don’t need it, drive on the wrong side of the road to save time, honk loudly at the person in the car in front, or pick up a dozen plastic bags at the supermarket, we need to remember that we are contributing to the urban mess that we are in.

Driving a non-polluting electric car is another way we can help bring down pollution-induced asthma. By being better citizens, we can improve things for ourselves. And we need to teach our children this as well.

We need to work actively on being calmer and more balanced in our outlook. Work-life balance is not just about getting home early. It is also adopting a healthier outlook and lifestyle and sharing it with our families, friends, and colleagues.

Finally, we need to realise that we are not immortal. And that we owe it to our children to get our health checked periodically and regularly. Many of the lifestyle diseases can be prevented or, if detected early, treated effectively before they kill.

The lifestyle diseases we see in increasing numbers today are hypertension, coronary artery disease and stroke, hypercholesterolemia, depression and cancer. Hypertension is related to the stresses of day-to-day living, from having to deal with the stress of driving in chaotic or snarled traffic to a simple thing such as getting a bill paid or a permit issued. Lack of sleep and overwork also contribute.

Coronary artery disease is related to many of these same issues, compounded with poor dietary habits, including eating heavy meals late at nights, binge partying including consumption of excessive amounts of alcohol and insufficient exercise due to lack of time and absence of infrastructure in the form of parks or recreational areas in our cities.

The same risk factors apply to hypercholesterolemia and stroke. Depression is becoming increasingly common among teens, single people in their twenties overwhelmed by the pressures of urban life and elders isolated from children who have emigrated overseas. Finally, cancer is a spectrum of disease that has an increasing prevalence in urban life largely due to a combination of the factors described earlier.

The government needs to focus on giving its urban citizens a decent quality of life. This includes safe water supply (uncontaminated by sewage), uninterrupted electricity supply, proper means of urban transport including a functioning public transport system and well-maintained roads, and breathing spaces in the form of parks and recreational areas. And if the garbage could be regularly collected, that would be the icing on the cake. Then malaria and dengue would become history, hopefully.

Essentially, stricter enforcement of penalties for violation of urban rules would be a big help. When is the last time you saw a pile of garbage under a sign that said: ‘Fine for dumping garbage here’? There’s one right outside my gate, and I’m sure there’s one not far from yours.