Privacy Policy

Effective date: 16 June 2026 · Last updated: 1 July 2026

This Privacy Policy describes how the Setu mobile application ("Setu", "the application", "we") collects, uses, and protects personal information of authorised officers of the Department of Roads (DoR), Government of Nepal. Setu is a closed-user-base application; public sign-up is not available. The application is operated jointly by the Department of Roads and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA); the Department of Roads is the operational authority, NDRRMA provides the hosting infrastructure, and the application is supported by Astra Labs Pvt. Ltd. (authorised publisher) and NAXA Nepal.

1. Information We Collect

Setu collects only the information required to coordinate the response to highway incidents:

• Account information - name, mobile number, role (engineer, supervisor, operator, or highway inspector), and the Road Post to which the user is assigned. Provided by the user's Road Post supervisor at the time the account is created.
• Location information - precise GPS coordinates while the user is on duty. Because highway incident response is time-critical, location is collected and shared continuously in the background while the user is on duty, including when the application is minimised, running in the background, or the device screen is off, so coordinators can always dispatch the nearest responder to an incident. While location is being shared, a persistent notification is displayed on the device. Location sharing runs only while the user is on duty and stops immediately when the user turns "On Duty" off, or signs out. Location is shared with dispatch and visible to authorised officers within the same Road Post.
• Operational information - incidents reported, progress updates posted, contacts added, and duty positions defined by the user during normal use of the application.
• Device information - basic device identifiers (operating system, battery level, network type) used only to display connectivity status to dispatch and to investigate technical issues.

2. How We Use Information

Information collected by Setu is used solely for the operational coordination of highway incident response:

• To authenticate the user and authorise their access to the application.
• To enable other authorised officers within the same Road Post to see the user's position on the operational map while the user is on duty.
• To dispatch the nearest available officers and equipment to a reported incident. This requires each on-duty officer's live location to remain available to dispatch continuously, including while the application is in the background, so that a responder can be sent the moment an incident is reported.
• To produce internal operational reports for the Department of Roads.

We do not use personal information for advertising, marketing, profiling, or any commercial purpose.

3. How We Share Information

Setu does not share personal information with any third party. All information is processed exclusively on infrastructure operated by NDRRMA on behalf of the Department of Roads. The application contains no third-party advertising networks, analytics SDKs, or social-media trackers.

4. Data Retention

Account information is retained for the duration of the user's assignment to the Department of Roads. Setu does not maintain a location history: only the user's most recent location is stored, and each new location update replaces the previous one. When the user is off duty, the application does not transmit location data and the stored value is not updated. Incident records (incident details and progress timeline) are retained for the period required by Government of Nepal record-keeping policy.

5. Your Rights

As an authorised user of Setu you have the right to:

• Request access to the personal information held about you.
• Request correction of any inaccurate information.
• Request deletion of your account through the in-application "Delete Account" option, or by writing to the contact below.
• Disable location sharing by turning the "On Duty" toggle off at any time.

6. Security

All communication between the application and the server is encrypted using industry-standard transport security (HTTPS). Authentication tokens are stored securely on the device. Passwords are stored on the server only in hashed form using bcrypt. The application contains no user-controlled file uploads, eliminating a large class of attack vectors.

7. Children's Privacy

Setu is intended exclusively for adult officers of the Department of Roads. The application is not directed at, and does not knowingly collect information from, individuals under eighteen (18) years of age.

8. Changes to This Policy

This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time. The effective date at the top of this page indicates when the policy was last revised. Material changes will be communicated to all authorised users through the application before the changes take effect.

9. Contact

For questions, complaints, or requests related to this Privacy Policy or your personal data, contact: