The minister interacted with state IT ministers on Tuesday via videoconferencing to discuss COVID-19 challenges, technological innovations and the roadmap for the IT and electronics sector.
"All states greatly appreciated the #AarogyaSetu app and shared their views on it. I assured them that a similar solution for feature phones is being developed and will be launched very soon," the minister said in a tweet.
The government mobile application Aarogya Setu, developed to track patients with coronavirus, has registered 75 million downloads (7.5 million rupees), the Ministry of Electronics and IT said on April 24.
The Aarogya Setu app alerts people if someone known or close has tested positive. The district administration has been asking all educational institutions and departments to push for the download of the application. The current version of the Aarogya Setu application is mainly compatible with smartphones.
When asked about the new solution in process, sources at the IT ministry said it will work on JioPhone, which is compatible with the KaiOS operating system.
"In addition, 1921 is an IVRS where any self-assessment test being done in the application can also be done over the phone. The answer will be captured and will go to the health system," said the source.
By some estimates, India has more than 400 million feature phones.
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