Dystopia: Creation of The Unknown Citizen and Aadhar card

Most of us just sit and wonder whether India should act like the United States of America. Sure, globalization has brought forth many changes into our urban life style and we are on our way to a more open and free society. But are we blindly adopting some things without much introspection? What does our government know about its citizens? Should good governance limit itself to census and statistics? Is the new system of Aadhar card reducing an individual to a mere set of random numbers? Can such an identity hold one's dreams, hopes and aspirations? Is our present system different or at least better than the identification system that existed in America back in 1930s?

                     W.H Auden was an English author who settled down in the States in 1939. He is considered as one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century. As a writer he always engaged with political issues in his poetry. Since he opted to live in America rather than Britain, he suffered blows to his reputation. He was also a homosexual who had a relationship with Christopher Isherwood. He later influenced "Auden Generation" of poets that dealt with political and ethical themes. He won Pulitzer Prize in 1947. He has written a fantastic poem about how some of the "trivial" matters for the state are actually the one that matters the most. Titled "The Unknown Citizen", it is narrated through the voice of a bureaucrat who examines the background of a citizen: JS/07 M 378. Looking at the Aadhar card issued by the government, sitting snugly in my purse, I felt it spoke to me "Does the number sound familiar?" It could be my imagination or it flashed its back to me to show the 12 digit code Indian government used to identify its citizens.

                   American society is mostly based on consumerism. Bureaucrats that run the government with politicians on top strictly keep a lot of information about its citizens. It can be for security, finance, development and may be even to stay in power. Most of the citizens don't know any of their "rulers" personally. It's all based on trust; whether it is kept, is another issue. These building blocks of power don't take an effort to know the citizens on a personal level, thus failing to realise that there is a difference between working of machinery and a government. Auden's Unknown Citizen: JS/07 M 378 is formed within the definitions of many such bureaus and organizations.  But does what they claim to know forms the actual individual? Just because a person wore saffron colour in India, does it make him a follower of BJP? The State talks as if it knows everything. It can give you a census report that shows how many starves in that country. But how many of those reports speak about the number of mothers that cried by watching their malnourished children sleep?

                   Auden adds the element of humour to this poem that does the main highlight. Sarcasm is one of the best modes of attack. The Unknown Citizen represents the portrayal of every politician as well, one who is shown as a perfect individual, who values family, culture, traditions, unions and welfare of the society with "extra ordinarily talented" kids. Such politicians walk around as the perfect citizens until Supreme Court throws them into some infamous jail. Politicians have an innate urge to foster such "citizens" around them to create vote banks. Such people without strong opinions about anything have such a malleable mind that can put the metal gold to shame. Such flexible citizens cause no harm to their government and its policies. Though we see the opposing people with a sceptical eye, it's them who keep the conversations within the process of democracy alive. It's the silent ones that we should be conscientious about. They are the power banks for political parties to thrive on.  In return they put these citizens into a state of trance offering them advertisements, corrupted news items and interesting loan facilities. They constantly monitor their buying habits and with the help of Multi National Corporations, State feeds them things that are made to seem "necessary" for the modern man.  The fact that Auden's Unknown Citizen got a marble monument is quite peculiar. State apparently has money to build this with the tax money just like India plans to spend almost 50,000 crores for the Aadhar project. Why worry even about a war when you have 1238.9 million people around?

                   Auden's The Unknown Citizen was influenced by The Unknown Soldier monuments in America, Britain and France. This Unknown Citizen, according to bureaus was a modern saint with no official complaints charged about him (hope holy men in India haven't yet heard about this; all are waiting for one more issue to get offended). This citizen served the "Greater Community" (with a capital G and C!) and even fought for his country.  He worked at a factory and his biggest achievement was that he never got fired. Note that all the "compliments" about him provided by the bureaus are standing on the verge of limit to become insults. He merely "satisfied" his bosses at "Fudge Motors Inc." (may be a 'what the fudge' version of Ford Motors Inc.). He was a "good" worker who paid his Union dues and even the bureaus are "satisfied" with the Unions. State even appointed social psychologists to check whether this man liked to hang out with his buddies and have a drink. The press is very "convinced" (who convinced them?) about his news paper reading habits and reports that he reacted to advertisements "normally ". He was a fully insured guy who had to see those dreaded walls of a hospital only once. Producers Research and High Grade Living (not at all a creepy organization) declares that he knew very well about loans and instalment plans. He had everything necessary for a modern man; what about clean water and unadulterated food? Don't ask! The government trusts the Eugenist's report that our citizen did good to the nation by adding five children to the population and staying out of education, that government structured and provided to them. Hitler believed in Eugenism too; enough said.  The most absurd thing is the question at the end; which is actually two important questions. Was he free? Was he happy? Government doesn't like challenging enquiries. They are so well equipped and confident to read into the "citizen's" mind the Twilight way. This citizen was apparently happy because no bureaus reported about any unhappiness in his life. Freedom is an overrated word for the State.

                   Why India is dragged down to this? If we believe we don't have a Big Brother governing us, think twice. What does the various governments at the centre and state level show to us? Are we turning our farmers into the Unknown Citizen as the first stage of this "creation"?   Statistics show that India is on its way to development and IT sector in India is booming. To curb terrorism and provide facilities easily, our government introduced Aadhar card that stores one's biometric details, personal details and an awful photo. Debates are going on currently about the need for such an identity document. Some believe that farmers and lower strata of society may get more representation and an easier access to government facilities. These days LPG gas cylinder subsidies are given via bank accounts with the help of Aadhar card (which forces one to take an ID card). Transgender community feels more welcomed since the authority that governs this provides them a space to identify themselves as the third gender. The other side talks about how storing such huge and relevant information in servers can be prone to cyber attack. Such information can be misused by Big Corporations (again with a capital B and C!) to increase their profit. Rather than focusing on the proverbial elephant in the room and think about the general welfare of the society, government acts to please the higher and affluent sections of the society. Any criticism against the government is met with mathematical figures. Parliament and state assemblies throw at each other figures they procured to prove and support their claims. NPR registers, biometric information, election ID cards, ration cards, Employment ID card, Insurance ID and census report constantly try to define how citizens eat, drink, drive, fall sick and die. It is some other separate study that shows how many of them under went depressions or committed suicides. Divorce rates are higher, but does government think about the children that face such life crisis? Education system is developing with smart classes and apps. How do people suffering from dyslexia cope up with it? How can children from poor background afford it? Who gets the advantage of reservation and who suffers due to that? With the increasing identity documents and asset declarations, corruptions still sees no end! Each budget plays around with taxes that prevent citizens to buy a decent car or fridge (the contemporary necessities of modern man). Advertisements become so influencing that, buying habits changed drastically. You are coaxed to buy expensive creams and vegetables bathed in pesticides. Employees are sometimes forced to join Unions and life has reached a point where maintaining a distance from politics makes you a freak. Try speaking against the government or any party; you will get beaten to death. Posting on Facebook and tweeting on Twitter requires vigilance since everything is a sensitive issue. Free speech regarding religion, politics or even sex is a big no- no. While State in Auden's poem showed the decency to build a monument for the Unknown Citizen, our government ignores the farmers who committed suicide due to poverty. Citizens are glued to television sets without knowing that the ground beneath them may get mined any day. There is no more Right to Property in our constitution. Each day new issues come up to threaten the democratic system that we struggle to maintain. Net Neutrality is the recent one.

                   Saints travel in Benz and politician travel in helicopters. Common man keeps his dream to buy a car aside since he/ she can't afford fuel prices. Social psychologists would now agree that the people mostly socialise through internet. Press and media care less about main issues and focuses on which celebrity caught flu and which politician swore in a public speech. Advertisements hail fair skin, money, size zero women and eight pack men.  Insurance companies have bloomed like mushrooms in monsoon to look for its next prey. Mutual fund investment has cropped up and their disclaimers are declared with a swift speed inaudible to human ears. Government hospital keeps no clear records about its poor patients and surgeries are performed by floor cleaners. Five star hospitals keep too much information to force you come back to them the very next time you fall ill. Auden's citizen only visited the hospital once. Indians lost count how many times they have visited a hospital. Companies have cropped up with instalment plans for luxury cars to smart phones.  Eugenists may go crazy seeing how population in India is growing. Education system has become such a farce where teachers may not even know the students they teach in rural areas. Parent- Teachers meeting? What is that?

                   Literature and History have always remained sceptical about creation of identities. Hitler used to tattoo numbers in order to identify Jews and kill them. Dystopian genre of literature and movies often show how government's policy to control and label sections of society, always ends up in chaos. Identity thefts occur; reputations are shattered and world plunges into violence.  It is clearly seen in books and movies like Veronica Roth's Divergent, In Time, Suzanne Collin are The Hunger Games, Elysium and Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Identity. In fact this has been a hot topic of discussion in Hollywood platforms.

A dystopia is an imaginary community or society that is undesirable or frightening. It is literally translated as "not-good place", an antonym of utopia. Such societies appear in many artistic works, particularly in stories set in a future. Dystopias are often characterized by dehumanization, totalitarian governments, environmental disaster, or other characteristics associated with a cataclysmic decline in society. Dystopian societies appear in many subgenres of fiction and are often used to draw attention to real-world issues regarding society, environment, politics, economics, religion, psychology, ethics, science, and/or technology, which if unaddressed could potentially lead to such a dystopia-like condition.  (Wikipedia)

                   Dystopian literature also includes Aldous Huxley's Brave New World (1932), George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty Four (1949). Government are in a frenzy to put everyone and everything under surveillance. More they control, more humanity is lost. Such strict need and desperation to keep track of citizens and collect their information, allow certain people to be tortured and even genocide to occur. Government can impose restrictions upon some sections, if found provocative against governing system. Society gets divided and huge competitions starts, since evolution suggests "survival of the fittest". Democracy and rights become puppets. For a country such as India, it's hard to control a large mass if a minute panic starts. Things may get exaggerated, anger can burst and communal violence can occur. Surveillance helps government to keep track of individuals and can initiate a man hunt if necessary.

                   Auden's futuristic vision in his poem The Unknown Citizen points to a point in history when the house of cards can tumble down. Though a disciplined and strict rule is necessary to keep society from going to barbaric methods, tyrannical powers can also crop up. There must be a constant interaction between one who rules and one who gets ruled. Elections make sure that no body handles power too long but we find loop holes around it. Everybody is equal under the eyes of law. We need to rise above the status quo. A future government must understand how people feel and think. It should feed the burning fire in everyone, not pour water over it. If it fails in its duties, the fire can engulf the whole humanity.

CITATIONS

·         Auden, W. H. "The Unknown Citizen.". Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 7 Dec. 2014. Web. 02 May 2015. <http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/unknown-citizen>.

·         "Dystopia" Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 22 June 2014. Web. 30 Apr. 2015.

·         "Dystopian Literature" Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 15 Aug 2014. Web. 1 May. 2015.