To begin, it’s not actually mandatory. The Telecom minister, Jyotiraditya Scindia clarifies-
The app is completely optional. If you want to delete it, you can. If you don’t wish to register, you shouldn’t register and can remove it anytime.
What the government has indeed mandated is-
- Ensure that the Sanchar Saathi mobile app is pre-installed on all mobile handsets.
- Ensure that the app is readily visible and accessible to the end users during first use or device setup and that its functionalities are not disabled or restricted.
- For all devices already manufactured and in sales channels in India, the manufacturer and importers of mobile handsets shall endeavour to push Sanchar Sathi via software updates.
Per the Department of Telecommunications, the Sanchar Sathi app is to curb misuse of telecom resources for cyber frauds and ensuring telecom cyber security.
Some false equivalence is being made with this app and the bevy of regular apps we use - X, Instagram, Google apps - which already harvest our data and monetize it in many ways. So why have a problem with Sanchar Saathi, is the question proponents seem to be asking. The matter is simply of informed consent. Commercial apps have terms of usage, and whether to install and use them or not is the user’s choice. There is also a difference between private organizations running tech products and a national government mandating one.
But as Scindia assures us, usage of Sanchar Sathi will not be mandatory. So it seems like much ado about nothing, for the most part.
UPDATE:- the government has withdrawn the mandate.