New Delhi: The Narendra Modi-led government is mulling ban on more Chinese applications, said reports. The development comes days after the Centre banned 59 major mobile apps including Tiktok including TikTok over national security concerns amid the border tussle at Ladakh which also led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers in the Galwan Valley clash with Chinese PLA troops. Also Read – COVID India Update: In Grim Milestone, Country Records Highest Single-day Spike of 49310 Cases; 740 Deaths Within 24 Hours
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had directed the 59 banned Chinese apps to strictly adhere to the orders or face serious action in case of violation. The Ministry had reportedly written to all the companies concerned and said that making the apps available, directly or indirectly, would violate IT Act and other laws. Also Read – India to Contribute 2.2% of Global Digital Payment Market by 2023
Other Chinese apps in the banned list are Club Factory, SHAREit, Likee, Mi Video Call (Xiaomi), Weibo, Baidu, BIGO LIVE and more. Also Read – China Successfully Launches Its First Rover Mission to Mars
Speaking to Hindustan Times, officials said that Helo Lite, ShareIt Lite, Bigo Lite and VFY Lite have already been removed from the Google playstore and Apple app store. Notably, these applications are the lighter versions of the already banned apps.
According to the IT ministry, the move would safeguard the interests of crores of Indian mobile users.
