Indian Railways makes Aarogya Setu app mandatory for train travel

Aarogya Setu mobile app has been developed by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The service is also available for people with landline and feature phones through Aarogya Setu Interactive Voice Response System. The service is available in 11 languages.

The application asks the user to keep the mobile phone's bluetooth and GPS on at all times and it is meant to alert people if they were to come near a person who has tested positive for the novel coronavirus. However, concerns have been raised about data privacy and surveillance regarding the app.

On May 11, the government revealed that the app had been downloaded in 9.8 crore smartphones so far and early alerts are being sent to people so that they have enough time to self isolate and check symptoms if they came in proximity of a COVID-19 patient.

The government also said that all data on the app's server will be deleted in 180 days and will not be used for any purpose after that.

Beginning Tuesday, 15 pairs of trains will run from Delhi connecting Dibrugarh, Agartala, Howrah, Patna, Bilaspur, Ranchi, Bhubaneshwar, Secunderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Madgaon, Mumbai Central, Ahmedabad, and Jammu Tawi.

Only e-tickets will be issued via the IRCTC website or through its mobile app. Tickets will not be issued on reservation counter of stations or via railways or IRCTC agents. Passengers must reach railway station at least 90 minutes before departure and face masks have to be worn throughout the journey.