Aarogya Setu app can be an e-pass to facilitate travel

New Delhi, Apr 11: Stressing on the importance of the recently launched 'Aarogya Setu' application by the government in fight against COVID-19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the tracking app could be used as an e-pass to facilitate travel from one place to another during the lockdown.

During the meeting with chief ministers, the Prime Minister "spoke about popularising the Aarogya Setu app to ensure downloads in greater numbers."

Referring to how South Korea and Singapore got success in contact tracing, PM Modi said, "based on those experiences, India has made its own effort through the app which will be an essential tool in India's fight against the pandemic.

He also referred to the possibility of the app being an e-pass which could subsequently facilitate travel from one place to another," the PMO said in a statement.

What is Aarogya Setu app?

The application launched by the goverment would alert authorities if people have come in close contact with an infected person.

The App, called 'AarogyaSetu', joins Digital India for the health and well-being of every Indian. It will enable people to assess themselves the risk of getting infected with coronavirus. It will calculate this based on their interaction with others, using a cutting edge bluetooth technology, algorithms and artificial intelligence.

How Aarogya Setu app works?

After instalment in a smart phone, the app detects other devices with AarogyaSetu installed that come in the proximity of that phone. The app can then calculate the risk of infection based on sophisticated parameters if any of these contacts is tested positive."

Aarogya Setu app is expected to help the Government in taking necessary timely steps for assessing risk of spread of COVID-19 infection, and ensuring isolation where required.

So far, Arogya Setu mobile app crosses over one crore downloads.