Page 44 - Smart public health emergency management and ICT implementations - A U4SSC deliverable on city platforms

Other consequences and considerations

1. There have been concerns in India that, by virtue of this App, the government can spy on citizens
and that privacy would be compromised. Though these are apprehensions and may or may
not exist, when the choice is between saving millions of lives and privacy, the choice is obvious.
The data is shared only with the government. The App doesn't allow user-names and numbers
to be publicly disclosed.

2. Since users are supposed to fill in all details concerning their health, any serious flu-like symptoms
can be interpreted as Covid-19, triggering false alarms and people overreacting when a case
is reported in their neighbourhood. Yet, it is better to err on the side of safety in the interest of
the community as a whole. A test in such cases would clarify everything.

Keys to success

The project can be deemed to be successful since a large number of citizens – more than 127
million people – downloaded the App as of July 2020. It gives confidence to the user that they are
in a safe zone, freeing them of undue apprehension due to this pandemic. This intervention can
be used in all types of cities, big or small. Only the dimensioning of the system would vary.

34 U4SSC: Smart public health emergency management and ICT implementations