With the lockdown on it has become important to stop the progress of the Virus and keep citizens safe and uninfected. In an effort to achieve that the government is using a contact tracking application called the Arogya Setu app to alert people about being in the proximity of someone who is infected or a carrier of the COVID-19 virus.
The app can be downloaded on I phone or android through google play and once installed it uses the location data of the user and the contact number to map it with a central database that carries the details of all the infected patients as well as the red zones. This alerts the user if he has been in the proximity of an infected user in the past 14 days. If so the user can then get himself tested or visit the hospital for a test.
But activists have seen the app with suspicion saying that it is just a control tactic form the government who wants the important user data and wants to track and keep a watch on the movement of its citizen. The data can be used to harass, punish people, and especially journalists who speak against the policies of the government.
Activists like Arundhati Roy has expressed grave concern on this being a spy application that the government has pushed on the people.
In terms of contact tracing git is being used in the UK, Singapore, and the US as well to isolate and quarantine infected people and inform others in the community to stay away from certain areas and people who are infected.
