Govt directs internet companies to immediately block 59 Chinese apps banned in India

Govt directs internet companies to immediately block 59 Chinese apps banned in India

New Delhi: The government on Tuesday directed all internet service providers to block 59 Chinese mobile apps under the emergency clause of the IT Act, according to sources.

The order has been issued in two sets — the first set contains list of 35 apps and the other 24 apps based out of China, the sources said.

“Order to block all 59 Chinese apps to internet service providers have been issued now,” a telecom ministry source told PTI.

The list has same set of apps as was announced by the government on Monday. It includes name of TikTok, UC News, UC Browser, Viva Video, Mi Video Call, Bigo Live, Wechat etc.

“The government has issued web link along with IP addresses which will make Internet service providers to easily block the access to Chinese apps,” an industry source said.

“The Ministry of Electronics and & Information Technology has issued directions for blocking 24 apps under the emergency clause 69A of the IT Act 2000, in addition to 35 apps for whose blocking instructions have been issued earlier today itself,” a DoT order to internet companies said.

India on Monday banned 59 apps with Chinese links, including hugely popular TikTok and UC Browser, saying they were prejudicial to sovereignty, integrity and security of the country.

China says strongly concerned over India’s decision to ban Chinese apps

China says strongly concerned over India’s decision to ban Chinese apps

Beijing: A day after India banned 59 apps with Chinese links for engaging in activities which are “prejudicial” to the “sovereignty and integrity” of the country, China on Tuesday voiced strong concern over India’s move and said New Delhi has the responsibility to uphold the “legitimate and legal rights” of international investors.

India on Monday, June 29 banned 59 apps with Chinese links, including the hugely popular TikTok and UC Browser, in the backdrop of the current stand-off along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh with Chinese troops.

Reacting to India’s ban on the Chinese apps at a Foreign Ministry briefing here, spokesman Zhao Lijian said, “China is strongly concerned about the relevant notice issued by the Indian side. We are checking and verifying the situation.”

“I want to stress that the Chinese government always asks the Chinese businesses to abide by international rules, local laws and regulations in their business cooperation with foreign countries,” he said.

“The Indian government has the responsibility to uphold the legitimate and legal rights of the international investors including the Chinese ones,” he said.

India’s Information Technology Ministry said on Monday that it has invoked its power under section 69A of the IT Act and rules, and has decided to block 59 apps in view of the information available that they are “engaged in activities which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, the security of the state and public order”.

The move will “safeguard the interests of crores of Indian mobile and internet users. This decision is a targeted move to ensure safety and sovereignty of Indian cyberspace”, it added.

The Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said the practical cooperation between China and India is actually mutually beneficial and win-win.

“Such pattern has been artificially undermined and it is not in the interest of the Indian side,” Zhao added.

The list of apps that have been banned by India also includes Helo, Likee, Cam Scanner, Vigo Video, Mi Video Call – Xiaomi, Clash of Kings as well as e-commerce platforms Club Factory and Shein.

This marks the largest sweep against the Chinese technology companies.

India’s Information Technology Ministry in a statement said that it has received many complaints from various sources, including several reports about is misuse of some mobile apps available on Android and iOS platforms for “stealing and surreptitiously transmitting users’ data in an unauthorized manner to servers which have locations outside India”.

“The compilation of these data, its mining, and profiling by elements hostile to national security and defence of India, which ultimately impinges upon the sovereignty and integrity of India, is a matter of very deep and immediate concern which requires emergency measures,” the statement said.

Indian alternatives to the most popular Chinese apps

Indian alternatives to the most popular Chinese apps

The ongoing border tensions between India and China has further aggravated anti-China sentiment in India. And deleting Chinese applications from mobile phones has now become the latest trend in India, as Indians are calling for a ban on using Chinese devices and even China-made apps on mobile phones. With a number of Indians now uninstalling Chinese apps on their phones, here’s a list of alternatives to some of the most popular Chinese apps.

1. Roposo- (Alternative to Tiktok)

Google Play store Rating 4.5*

Roposo, is an Indian video-sharing social media platform where people express visually with homemade videos and photos. Catering to users aged between 13 and 35 years, the app offers a TV-like browsing experience with user-generated content on its channels. Roposo provides more flexibility to its users by allowing them to create their own original videos. They can also use an audio clip to make videos similar to TikTok.

2. Sharechat- (Alternative to Helo)

Google Play Store rating 4.3*

ShareChat is India’s own handcrafted multilingual social network founded by Indians, for Indians that demonstrates Indians’ sensibilities, needs and behavior. With over 60 million monthly active users, ShareChat today stands as India’s largest regional social network which enables users to express their thoughts and opinions, driven by like-minded interests without any social stigma or language as a barrier.  This is massively popular and a must-have app for Indian internet users to engage in their language of choice across genres and categories that truly represent the Indian flavour of the platform.

3. Jio Switch-(Alternative to Shareit)

Google Play Store rating 4.3*

Jio Switch is the new alternative for Chinese app Shareit. Like ShareIt, this app can also be used to transfer and share files, photos, videos, documents and more from one device to another. This application is available for Android as well as for iOS Users. With almost all the features of ShareIt and one additional benefit of being ad free, it makes Jio Switch a perfect and better replacement for ShareIt.

4. Say Namaste – (Alternative to Zoom)

Google play Store rating 4.6*

Conceptualized, designed and developed by Indians, Say Namaste is a multi-party text, voice and video conferencing solution. It is currently available on Desktop/Laptop using the Google Chrome browser and on Android Phones and iOS Phones using the app. learning from Zoom’s experience, Say Namaste is also exploring multiple encryption options that work best in terms of security, privacy and performance for the service and could be a reliable and more secure alternative to Zoom

5. LightX Photo Editor – (Alternative to Beauty Plus)

Google play Store rating 4.5*

Chinese app Beauty Plus has carved a place for itself and established a strong fan base in India. It is one of the most widely used Selfie & Photo editing apps in the country.  However, here’s a photo editing app that covers all functionalities of its popular Chinese counterparts, Light X Photo Editor. If you want an all-in-one photo editor in your phone then LightX Photo Editor is a preferred choice, and most of the features are also free. You can merge photos, add effects and filters, selectively apply colors to regions of an image, adjust the color balance, smooth and sharpen images, crop them, rotate them, draw on them, add frames and stickers, add text, create collages and a whole lot more.