A pandemic admittedly requires the extensive gathering of data and surveillance to understand disease trends, infrastructural constraints, and to frame prevention and mitigation strategies. However, the objective of securing public health, crucial as it may be, cannot be oblivious to constitutionally-guaranteed civil liberties.

Concerns about the impact of disease surveillance on individual rights—including privacy—are not new. Globally, previous epidemics have led to an increasing acceptance that public health initiatives must also respect freedom and privacy to the greatest extent possible. However, India does not appear to have factored this into its response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Rather, what we are witnessing is a push to develop and adopt ad hoc technology-based solutions without a clear understanding of their limitations and harms. Lessons from history and other jurisdictions show that a rights-friendly response to the pandemic is possible and must be strived for.