Explained: What is BharOS, India’s rival to Android mobile operating system

Android and iOS operating systems have been dominating the mobile OS segment for quite a long time now but in the last couple of years, several new indigenous operating systems have popped up that have a potential to challenge Android. One such indigenous mobile operating system that is claimed to benefit India's 100 crore mobile phone users has been developed by Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras)-incubated firm.

Called 'BharOS,' this software can be installed on commercial off-the-shelf handsets. It is said to provide a secure environment for users and is a significant contribution towards 'Atmanirbhar Bharat.' BharOS Services are currently being provided to organisations that have stringent privacy and security requirements whose users handle sensitive information that requires confidential communications on restricted apps on mobiles. Such users require access to private cloud services through private 5G networks.

The BharOS was developed by JandK Operations Private Limited (JandKops), which has been incubated by IIT Madras Pravartak Technologies Foundation, a Section 8 (Not for Profit) Company established by IIT Madras. 

BharOS comes with No Default Apps (NDA). This means that users are not forced to use apps that they may not be familiar with or that they may not trust. Additionally, this approach allows users to have more control over the permissions that apps have on their device, as they can choose to only allow apps that they trust to access certain features or data on their device.

BharOS provides access to trusted apps from organisation-specific Private App Store Services (PASS). A PASS provides access to a curated list of apps that have been thoroughly vetted and have met certain security and privacy standards of organisations. This means users can be confident that the apps they are installing are safe to use and have been checked for any potential security vulnerabilities or privacy concerns.