‘To track citizens’: Rahul Gandhi on compulsory use of Aarogya Setu app

New Delhi, May 02: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said the Aarogya Setu mobile application is a sophisticated surveillence system outsourced to a private operator to track people.

"The Arogya Setu app, is a sophisticated surveillance system, outsourced to a pvt operator, with no institutional oversight - raising serious data security and privacy concerns. Technology can help keep us safe; but fear must not be leveraged to track citizens without their consent," tweeted Rahul.

IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad was quick to respond and dismissed the snooping charge.

"Aarogya Setu is a powerful companion which protects people. It has a robust data security architecture. Those who indulged in surveillance all their lives, won't know how tech can be leveraged for good!," tweeted the minister.

The Centre has made it mandatory for government and private sector employees to use Aarogya Setu mobile application to bolster the efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, and entrusted the organisational heads with ensuring its 100 per cent coverage.

The Union Home Ministry also said the mobile app will be must for people living in COVID-19 containment zones.

"Use of Arogya Setu app shall be made mandatory for all employees, both private and public. It shall be the responsibility of the head of the respective organisations to ensure 100% coverage of this app among the employees," the ministry said.

The announcement came on a day the government extended the nationwide lockdown by two weeks from May 4 with certain relaxations.