How the Aarogya Setu mobile application works? Image Courtesy – https://www.enterhindi.com
Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently announced in his message through the All India Radio programme ‘Maan Ki Baat’ about the application ‘Aarogya Setu’. He told that every citizen should download the app to help the government to fight against Covid-19. It is a COVID-19 tracking mobile application prepared by the ‘National Informatics Centre’, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India.
Let us explain how the app creates a user database of information forming a network that can notify the citizens and the government both about the potential victims of coronavirus.
This application can be downloaded both from Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store. It utilizes location data to point out people who have come in contact with Covid-19 positive patient. The application works in accessing your location and your Bluetooth for proper functioning.
Read: Travel Management Software – a blessing of modern science
After providing the above permissions the app requests for some basic info that helps to reconstruct the database about the users. There are some questions about the user’s age, gender, name, health status and history of travel to any country in the past few weeks etc. The application also verifies the category of profession. Then it asks a question if the user will be wishing to help in times needed.
A self-assessment questionnaire is to put forward in the next step where a user is asked about his/her current health status and also the questions about current symptoms of Covid-19. There are some questions for those who are doctors. The users are to declare about their travel history if got exposed to Covid-19 patients or not. After getting the inputs from the user, the app then suggests a solution.
The considers the Bluetooth range of the smartphone as an accessibility sensor for some specific distances like 500m, 1km, 2km, 5km, 10km under that the user can be infected by another person who is Covid-19 positive. When 2 smartphones come within their Bluetooth range, the app exchanges information. If anyone of the users is positive, the other person will be notified about the chance of being infected. These specific cases are then stored to the database and are sent to the government for further investigation.
