A visit to Pune’s Regional Transport Office (RTO) office turned out to be more shocking than anyone could imagine for a founder based there. Ganesh Sonawane, founder and CEO of Frido, noticed that the walls outside the building are completely covered in gutka (a type of chewing tobacco) stains.
He shared his experience on X (formerly Twitter) with a sarcastic remark: “This is shot today from Pune RTO office! The two most expensive things anyone buys are car and home. Both force us to visit to the registering govt offices which are an artistic benchmark and gives exposure to amazing fragrances.”
The founder also shared a photo that showed the walls outside the RTO office in Pune completely covered with gutka stains which made the area look dirty
and neglected.
See His Post Here
This is shot today from Pune RTO office! The two most expensive things anyone buys are car and home. Both force us to visit to the registering govt offices which are an artistic benchmark and gives exposure to amazing fragrances. pic.twitter.com/eOB4kzgdaL
— Ganesh Sonawane (@ganeshunwired) November 25, 2025
Frustration Over Hygiene At Pune RTO
The post drew attention from social media users who expressed frustration over what they saw as a lack of basic hygiene. Many demanded banning gutka altogether in order to keep public spaces clean and prevent such disgusting sights at government offices.
One user commented, “Banning gutka is the bare minimum we can do.”
Another said, “This was one of the most disgusting things I experienced in Pune…ridiculous.”
Some people expressed skepticism about any real change being made. “They will never ban gutka. They will never fine people. That’s the sad reality,” someone remarked.
A person sarcastically wrote, “They’re getting you ready for what you’ll probably see around the city when you’re out driving. Nice to see such a thoughtful approach from the government.”
Several users shared observations on why such conditions exist with an individual stating, “It’s kept like that intentionally so that citizens do not visit there and get the work done via agent.”
“Banning gutkha, charging heavy fines would’ve solved,” a commenter opined.
“You can make the most aesthetic beautiful building in India look horrible dirty and covered in shit by spitting urinating. People have lost a sense of ownership. They feel public = not my responsibility. We need Social Science and Behaviour as the only subject upto Class 4,” read another comment while one more simply stated, “Zero civic sense.”
Many also noted that this is not just a Pune issue. One user pointed out that a similar situation exists at Mumbai’s Andheri West RTO office.
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