Indore: With India banning 59 Chinese apps -- including TikTok -- dubbing them “security threat”, alternative desi apps have started filling in the void.
Taking this as an opportunity to give the central government’s “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” initiative a push, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has decided to engage technical institutions teachers and students in the development of alternative apps, products and technologies.
The technical regulatory has asked its approved universities and institutions to “Be Vocal & Buy Local” for avoiding dependence on other countries.
In his letter addressed to institutions, AICTE chairman Anil Sahasrabudhe citied the ongoing border tension and requested technical institutions to help the country achieve the national goal of being “Aatmanirbhar Bharat’”.
Without mentioning China, Sahasrabudhe said: “The recent border turmoil, additionally, has forced the nation, as a whole, to introspect about the alternatives and to avoid dependence on other nations about our needs and requirements. One of the glowing examples is the manufacture of personal protective equipment (PPE) and N95 masks. While we were dependent on imports for these items, the Covid-19 pandemic has made us not only self-reliant but also export them. A crisis has been turned into an opportunity. Time beacons us all to be pro-active and pitch in our best efforts to be self-reliant.”
He has urged institutions to encourage their respective teachers and students for the development of alternative apps, products and technologies through innovative ideas and research which will not only make India self-reliant but also propel it to the forefront as the primary source for meeting all global needs and requirements.
Acknowledging the work done by institutions during the pandemic in terms of making PPEs, sanitisers, face masks, ventilators and apps, Sahasrabudhe said that AICTE has instituted an award in form of Utkrusht Sansthan Vishwakarma Award.
Ministry of Home Affairs on June 29 banned 59 Chinese apps including Tik-Tok, Shareit, UC Browser, WeChat etc stating that they stealing and surreptitiously transmitting users’ data in an unauthorised manner.
