Mandatory app attendance: MCD teachers move HC, notice issued

New Delhi: Teachers from schools run by the municipal corporations of Delhi have now decided to move court against the corporations' need to mark their attendance through a mobile application, alleging a potential breach of privacy.

Municipal corporations in the city have been since September directing their employees across departments to download the "MCD Smart" mobile application to mark their daily attendance but the employees have been resisting.

Earlier in August, civic bodies in both North and South Delhi have issued fresh directions stating, "…it has been observed that very few officials have followed the directions and still a large number of officers have not downloaded the mobile app for marking their attendance." The authorities have directed the employees to download the app within the next five days, adding that non-compliance will be viewed "seriously".

The Nagar Nigam Shikshak Sangh has moved a plea in the Delhi High Court against these orders, arguing that "there are major security concerns with the mobile application as the application might breach the security of the person who downloads it and it would have unrestricted access to confidential data apart from the GPS location".

The association of teachers have now been protesting against these directions, saying that being made to download and use such an application on their mobile phones — a personal device, would invariably lead to security and privacy intrusions. Hence, the teachers have also been demanding that the civic bodies give them official mobile phones to use if they want to press on with the use of this application.

A notice has been issued on their petition in the Delhi High Court, asking the corporations to file the terms and conditions of using the mobile application. The court had highlighted that it would require the terms specifically relating to the privacy settings before the next hearing.