Facebook has a 'desi' competitor! And it's available on android, iOS

In a push for a self-reliant India nearly a week after banning several Chinese mobile apps, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday (July 5) launched Elyments, the first indigenously developed social media app in the country. It was developed by over 1,000 IT professionals who volunteer at Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s Art of Living Foundation.

The call for a self-reliant India is not aimed at encouraging “protectionism or isolationism”, but for adopting a pragmatic development strategy to enable the country recognise and capitalise on its inherent strengths, Naidu said during the virtual launch of the mobile app that will compete with the likes of Facebook and Instagram in India.

Elyments is now available on both Google Play Store and App Store. Play Store shows the app has been downloaded more than one lakh times. It is available in English and eight Indian languages, besides Spanish, and offers features like a content feed. It comes with a camera feature that has built-in filters and augmented reality characters.

On the YouTube link of the launch event, the developers said on Elyments, “People will be able to connect globally and shop locally.” Data of users is stored in India and user’s data will never be shared with a third party without user’s consent, the write-up said. It allows free audio-video calls and a private chat connection.

Speaking at the virtual launch of the new ‘desi’ social media app, Vice President Naidu said that the “atmanirbhar Bharat” campaign was aimed at giving a fresh boost to the economic potential of India by strengthening its infrastructure, using modern technologies, enriching human resource, and creating robust supply chains.

“It is not a call for protectionism or isolationism, but for adopting a pragmatic development strategy that would enable the nation to recognise and capitalise on its inherent strengths,” he observed. India has come to be known as one of the IT superpowers due to its talented scientists and technology experts who are occupying leadership positions across the globe, he said.

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Naidu said that it was quite appropriate that Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat App Innovation Challenge’ on Saturday as it would encourage Indian IT specialists to prepare apps for various uses to enhance quality of life.

Naidu noted that over a thousand IT professionals, who are also volunteers of Art of Living, have together created Elyments. The vice president said such initiatives by the Indian tech industry and professionals were truly praiseworthy as they not only demonstrated India’s prowess in technology but also were a step towards a self-reliant India.

(With inputs from agencies)