MODERN society is beset with many ills, including a careless attitude towards the value of time. This is often a cause for irritation and angst for those who tend to be punctual.

Strict observance of time is one of the important messages of the Holy Quran. Allah says “To every people is a term appointed: when their term is reached, not an hour can they cause delay, nor (an hour) can they advance (it in anticipation)” (7:34).

Nature also wants humans to be conscious of time in all matters of life. It has provided signs to keep time in day-to-day matters. Allah has said about the phases of the moon “… Say: These are signs to mark fixed periods of time for mankind and for the pilgrimage. …” (2:189). Celestial bodies like the sun, moon and the planets all abide by time.

Unfortunately, our society presents a very sorry state in timekeeping; dillydallying has become a part of our nature. No marriage party starts on time, no doctor sees his patient at the appointed time, no train arrives on its scheduled time, no flight takes off on the dot, no officer reaches his office on time and recently, we observed that even polling staff was late in reaching polling stations on election day.

Similarly, many national institutes are often in the news for the wrong reasons, including not meeting deadlines. Their planned programmes and projects suffer from procrastination and remain behind schedule, resulting in cost escalation. Huge public funds are wasted because of not abiding by deadlines.

In Pakistan, many development programmes are initiated but their timely execution remains a pipe dream, whereas the developed nations show promptness in the execution of their programmes.

Doing things exactly on time is rare in our society and many of our problems are directly or indirectly connected to our habit of disregarding punctuality. This reflects our lack of seriousness in fulfilling responsibilities and subsequent underperformance in important matters.

It is said that time and tide wait for no one. This means no one can prevent the clock’s hands from moving ahead. Our life is limited in time and every one of us is accountable for whatever time is allocated to us. The end is fixed but it is unknown as Allah says “…None can reveal its time but He (Allah). …” (7:187). Therefore, one should try to complete tasks within the time available.

Life is competitive and punctuality is the key to success. In schools punctuality makes students shine, in hospitals it is the difference between life and death, in businesses it secures goodwill and progress and in other social activities it earns respect and dignity.

Every day nature allocates 24 hours to an individual. This requires people to be conscious of the passage of time. But some people waste their time by discussing unimportant matters. This can be observed at markets and other public places.

Some people, who have acquired internet accessibility and new gadgets such as mobile phones over-engage themselves in unnecessary calls or chatting, thus killing precious time. These gadgets are for human benefit and their use is subject to necessity.

There are stories of certain charismatic people whose punctuality was exemplary; others used to synchronise their wristwatches as per their arrival. They got up early at a fixed time and performed all their tasks in accordance with their schedule. Timekeeping and punctuality were the epitome of their personality.

But now a very unfortunate situation prevails in our society — the majority of people are ignorant of what they profess religiously and what they practise in actual life. The mindless attitude that leads to not accomplishing tasks on time affects everyone. Condoning this will have serious repercussions for all society.

We live in a global world characterised by strict adherence to timekeeping. For example, if our businessmen are not sincere in maintaining the deadlines of delivery of goods or services, they might lose not only future business prospects but also reputation, goodwill and respect.

Adhering to a proper schedule is one of the fundamental requirements of a decent society. Keeping appointments, properly scheduling time and meeting deadlines are all vital to modern living.

Time is the most precious commodity; it is wealth but unlike money, it cannot be replaced. Once wasted, it can never be recovered. If an appointment with a friend, colleague or for a business meeting is made, one should do the utmost to keep the appointment. In order to demonstrate sincerity and ability to deliver on a promise, one has to make efforts in this connection.

One can be running late on rare occasions but disregarding scheduled appointments on a regular basis is a serious issue. It is tantamount to breaking a promise. Islam considers fulfilling a promise a fundamental aspect of a believer’s life. In the Quran, faithfully honouring a promise is described as one of the major characteristics of a believer.

Making society sincere about honouring its words and maintaining punctuality requires seriousness. This can be achieved through long-term efforts.

The writer is an educationist.

amin.valiani@itrebp.org