Bhubaneswar, July 8: The municipal corporation has begun a campaign called Wo Kya Sochenge urging people to behave responsibly as spectators at the ongoing Asian Athletics Championship 2017 being held in the city.

The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) campaign, which is now trending on social media, aims to avoid a repetition of the 2015 Barabati Stadium episode during the athletics meet.

In 2015, Odisha was put to shame for the behaviour of the audience when they threw bottles on the ground at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack after India's dismal batting performance against South Africa in a T20 cricket match. The Indian cricket team captain M.S. Dhoni had to call off the match midway due to the incident.

The objective of the campaign is to sensitise the people not to repeat the act during the ongoing athletics meet. BMC tweeted: "When you let anger get the best of you it brings out the worst in you. Think before you act! #WoKyaSochenge #ACC2017 #Bhubaneswar."

The tweet went viral on Twitter and Facebook within minutes and people started reacting to it. Twitter user Abhinash Kumar replied to the tweet and said: "People should not act like this!! Winning and loosing are just part of game. We should think before doing such shameful act #WoKyaSochenge."

"It is a proud moment for all of us to see the enthusiasm of the people for the championship. We worked very hard to transform the city for the event. Our success is speaking for itself. The games and its related events are trending everywhere," said Bhubaneswar Development Authority vice-chairman Krishan Kumar.

Mayor of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation Ananta Narayan Jena said this was a society driven by the social media.

"Social media has become the direct medium to connect with the people. We started the campaign on Twitter and realised its impact very soon," he said.

Besides, making efforts to popularise the game on social media platform, the civic body is also making effort to maintain cleanliness in and around the Kalinga Stadium. The civic body has made two control rooms operational where officials are monitoring the sanitation and addressing problems.

"The efforts of the administration to ensure smooth conduct of the championship are visible. The city was transformed in a record time. Everyone is talking about it. We must also realise it that the shameful incident at the Barabati Stadium shouldn't be repeated. After all, it is a game," said Sarita Mishra, a sports enthusiast, outside Kalinga Stadium.