The Prime Minister had also listed how South Korea and Singapore have been successful in tracing connections and said that India has made its own efforts through the app to contain coronavirus spread.
Coronavirus pandemic: India leads COVID-19 fight ahead of global tech giants with its innovative ‘Aarogya Setu app’, says World Bank report released on Sunday! India’s containment efforts against Coronavirus outbreak, especially the launch of Aarogya Setu to keep a track on the movement of infected persons have earned praise from World Bank. The Washington-based multilateral agency has said that Covid-19 can also be successfully countered with the help of digital technologies like in case of East Asian pandemic in the past.
The agency has recognised the efforts made by India by launching the Aarogya Setu app in its South Economic Focus report. The report added the functioning of the app and said that it uses smartphone location data to tell users if they were close to someone who had tested positive for Covid-19.
India has taken a lead over other global tech giants by releasing the Aarogya Setu app with experts and multilateral agencies identifying it as a valuable breakthrough to prevent the spread of the disease. Days after the launch of the app, global tech giants Apple and Google said they were developing a mobile platform to help monitor contacts and alert users if they were in touch with Covid-19 infected people.
Want to publish your own articles on DistilINFO Publications?
Send us an email, we will get in touch with you.
Further, Niti Aayog’s CEO Amitabh Kant expressed optimism on the joint efforts by the two tech heavyweights Google and Apple to control the Covid-19 pandemic. He reiterated India’s leadership in developing technology to combat the Coronavirus by launching an app that is secure, robust and scalable to billions of Indian people. He also pointed out the emphasis given on privacy issues while developing the app.
On April 10, the government had said that a total of 30 lakh people downloaded the Aarogya Setu Software. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has urged all citizens to download this software because it helps people to determine the risk of their infection with Coronavirus.
During the video conferencing with chief ministers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that it would be an important tool in India’s battle against coronavirus and referred to the possibility that the app would be an ‘e-pass that could then make it easier for people to move from one place to another.’
The Prime Minister had also listed how South Korea and Singapore have been successful in tracing connections and said that India has made its own efforts through the app to contain coronavirus spread. A PMO release said the Prime Minister had talked about popularizing the Aarogya Setu app to ensure greater numbers of downloads.
Earlier last week, the Prime Minister had urged people to download the app saying it is a significant move in the battle against COVID-19 and that its effectiveness will increase with more people. “Aarogya Setu is an important step in our battle against COVID-19. It offers useful knowledge through leveraging technology. As more and more people use it, it will increase its efficacy. I encourage all of you to download it,” he had said in a tweet.
The software that was released in public-private partnership earlier this month helps people to determine the risk of contracting the coronavirus infection themselves. Using Bluetooth technology, algorithms and artificial intelligence, the software makes its predictions based on a person’s contact with others.
Source: The Financial Express
