Move over Signal, Telegram; ‘desi’ WhatsApp comes to iPhones – Times of India

The government of India for a while now has been giving a big push to made-in-India apps. The whole thing started after Chinese apps were banned and we saw a slew of apps — TikTok clones mainly — come up. Now, another such made-in-India app — Sandes — is now available to download on Apple’s App Store.
What is Sandes?
Sandes is an instant messaging app developed by National Informatics Centre (NIC) and is India’s answer to WhatsApp. As per the app description, it is a “secured instant messaging platform to connect with government officials, family, and friends with GIMS Instant messenger for free.”
Where is Sandes app available to download?
As of now, the app is only available on Apple’s App Store. Google Play Store hasn’t got the app, which means Android users can’t download the app. Any word on availability on Android is not yet known.
What are the key features of Sandes
The app developer — NIC — claims that Sandes offers end-to-end encryption messaging. The app also supports audio/video calls as well. Users can also share multimedia content and other files through the app. Some of the other features of the app include contact sharing, message styling, message tagging, back up and restore, phone book synchronisation, group chat, chat bots, broad cast messages etc.
Is Sandes app free to download?
Yes, the app is free to download from Apple App Store.
How to download Sandes
Simply head to Apple App Store, search for the app and download.