You and me and Standardisation!

I opened my trunk of old books. I needed to leaf through some old Vedic texts to find out some information for one friend. At the end of the day, as I found going through the large amount of Sanskrit texts tiring, I opened easily available translations - done mostly by European scholars from past centuries. And then - I suddenly realised what a romanticised vision of the orient those European scholars had. Words carry multiple meanings in Vedic language – and meanings were picked up such a way that most of the times Vedic gods are no different from Greek gods!  As I started discussing this with my friend, he told this was normal while European scholars were already aware of Greek Gods. And I remembered my experience of working with concept of Standardisation that paints all the ‘Gods‘ of the world with same colour – experience that terrified me for years.

Standardisation as a technical concept is used to check the accuracy of a product.  First you invent a standard (universally acceptable measure) to qualify your product and then measure every product from the product line comparing with that standard – once passed the standard test, the product is universally acceptable! Obviously this Standard or quality measurement scale was invented in those parts of globe which gave birth to heavy industries. And the concept was working excellent as we started getting better products and commodities as a result of its implementation. A factory producing steel pipes started getting steel sheets of same quality according to choice from the steel–maker.  Cloths available in market, if standard tested, were not going to be discoloured or tear before a certain period of time. In a word, standardisation brought certainly in life – through a revolutionary approach introduced by the British machine tool innovator Henry Maudslay in the beginning of 19^th century - to qualify products with very less or no human intervention. One does not need to waste time to find which of the products in the market suits own choice or requirement. Also mass production became easier with a Standard available. Therefore by mid-19^th century all “developed nations” of the world took a vow to follows “standard” in all industrial sectors. And post WWII, as information technology became a commodity ‘of the people, by the people, for the people’ – Standardisation became universal!

My life, I am sure yours too, became easier with the boon of information technology. I forgot writing on paper since years and happy that I don’t need to get up from my chair to fetch dictionaries from the shelf while writing. Even my cooking has been easier with standard-tested kitchen-appliances and utensils and ingredients.

At the same time – the widespread use of “Standardisation” started terrifying me. This is not only applicable in commerce and industries; in post globalisation world, “Standard” has to be followed in every sphere of life. Almost all abstract nouns – Honesty, Beauty, Compassion, Success, Affection – even hunger and thirst seem to have been standardised.

Human communication style has to be standardised – one is not allowed to use words which are not prescribed. I have to write following a specific format – otherwise it is not ‘standard tested’ to suit a literary magazine.  One has to wear cloths to follow standards specified in the company – I have to forget my handloom sarees if I want to work as a foreign language professional – these do not pass the ‘standard test’ of clients from developed nations. I cannot flaunt my favourite pot-bellied body before people – it does not follow the Standard of a ‘decent’ body. In fact, different parts of human body have to be measured by standard specified by the mannequin-makers. You do not have an intension to purchase a big flat TV that is specified for a Standard drawing room of a middle class Indian?  - You are not Standard middle class! A colleague of yours did not join the animal-protection brigade in your office? – He does not pass the Standard of ‘compassionate’ human being, of course! You are not part of any particular religious group? – You are atheist as per Standard.  You call yourself a Brahmin?   - You are an ‘oppressor’ as per Standard. You didn’t have sex by the age of twenty two? – you are not qualified to be a ‘healthy’ human being as per Standard established by civilised society – go commit suicide!

And finally Standardisation takes the route of exclusion. Either you pass the Standard I am specifying for you. Or I do not ‘need’ you. Who specifies the Standard? Of course the developed nations! In recent days, as a counter production of Standards specified by them, we the Indians have developed our Standards – women wearing skirt do not pass Standard of ‘modesty’; people eating fish and meat do not pass the Standard of ‘non-violence’.  Post globalisation world is a world of Standards and Counter-standards. No one and nothing that is not following a Standard is acceptable.

And we also know that every action comes with a reaction. When the all-pervading Standardisation covers all spheres of life – a concept of counter-standardisation is supposed to develop as well. Is it easy to imagine what if that new concept quashes the idea of Standardisation away from every sphere of life - someday?