Govt tells makers of apps to stick to ban or face action

nNEW DELHI: The Union government has asked the makers of 59 mobile applications from mostly China-based companies to comply with its ban order or risk further action, reminding them it is illegal for them to remain accessible in India in any manner.

The apps were banned in late June and the government cited concerns to national security. The move came in the middle of unprecedented tensions with China following the first deadly military confrontation between the two countries earlier that month.

According to an official who asked not to be named, the communication follows up on a set of questions sent to these developers about the location of centres and the data collection they carry out.

The ministry of electronics and information technology (Meity) has now conveyed that “if we come across any instances where you are not banned, or still accessible or available in the territory of India, then action will be taken against you in compliance with the company law,” the official, who asked not to be named, told HT citing the letter sent to these developers.

The government on June 29 banned Tiktok, Camscanner and UC Browser among these 59, saying they were prejudicial to sovereignty, integrity and security of the country. At least some of these companies, such as Tiktok which had a wide userbase in the country, shut down their services shortly after the order.

EXPERIENCE YOUR CITY LIKE NEVER BEFORE flight of chipped steps — they resemble the segments of those old buildings one finds in the mansions of north Calcutta— evoking that familiar feel of dilapidated aristocracy.

An arched window is framed towards the top, but it is blocked up with bricks as if some nihilist wanted to purposely destroy its straightforward beauty.

Cinema Excelsior opened in 1938, and shut down in early 2016, according to Ziya Us Salam, author of the book Delhi 4 Shows: Talkies of Yesteryear. The last movie to be screened here was Deewana, he informs. There used to be another single-screen cinema nearby: the Chawri Bazaar Metro station stands in the place of ‘New Amar’. At the moment this alley is empty, save for a very ill-looking, very untidy mud-stained cat sitting atop a lamp post — she is intently watching at a pigeon perched on a power cable. A monkey suddenly appears and the cat escapes by jumping on the theatre’s roof. The cinema’s pediment has its name printed in Urdu script as well as in Roman, or Latin— obviously.

THE COMMUNICATION FOLLOWS UP ON A SET OF QUESTIONS SENT TO THESE DEVELOPERS ABOUT THE LOCATION OF CENTRES AND THE DATA COLLECTION

THEY CARRY OUT