Recently, the Centre issued a guideline saying that it's only mandatory for people working in the private and public sectors and attending offices to have the Government's Aarogya Setu app installed on their phones, and that it's not for everyone. 

However, it looks like things are getting a bit serious as police officials have now started taking action on anyone found without the app on their phone.

According to a new report, it looks like it is now mandatory for people in Noida and Greater Noida to have the Aarogya Setu app on their phones. 

Not having it on your phone may land you a fine or jail time for 6 months.

© MensXP/ Akshay Bhalla

Akhilesh Kumar, DCP Law and Order said, "All those with smartphones who do not have the application can be booked under Section 188 of the IPC. After that, a judicial magistrate will either decide if the person will be tried, fined, or left with a warning."

Section 188 of IPC, for those of you who don't know, deals with disobedience to an order duly promulgated by a public servant. So, in case you live in Noida or Greater Noida and don't have the app installed on your phone, then you may land a fine of up to Rs 1,000. You may also be imprisoned for up to 6 months.

âIf people download it instantly, we will let them go. We are doing this so that people take the order seriously and download it. But if they do not download it after repeated warnings, we will have to take action,â Kumar added.

© Reuters

The officials are going as far as providing data hotspots in case they don't have mobile data. And in case there's no storage left on your device for the app, the officials will get your phone number to call back and check if you've downloaded it.

This seems like an extreme measure, however, the officials say they want people to take the app more seriously and download it. 

Source: Indian Express

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