1. Who we are
Pruthwi is a mobile app for reporting and resolving civic issues in Vadakara, such as water logging, waste dumping, broken streetlights and potholes. It is provided for Vadakara Municipality, Vadakara, Kozhikode district, Keralam ("the Municipality").
- Data Fiduciary
- Vadakara Municipality. The Municipality decides why and how personal data in Pruthwi is processed. It is the "Data Fiduciary" under India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 ("DPDP Act").
- Data Processor
- Zetaspace Intelligence Private Limited ("Zetaspace"), CIN U72100KL2025PTC095408, Centre for Innovation & Entrepreneurship, University of Calicut, Thenhipalam, Kozhikode, Keralam 673635. Zetaspace develops and operates Pruthwi on the Municipality's behalf and processes personal data only on its instructions.
In this policy, "we", "us" and "our" mean the Municipality and Zetaspace together, unless we name one of them. "You" means anyone who uses Pruthwi. This policy is written to meet the DPDP Act and the rules made under it, and the Information Technology Act, 2000.
2. What this policy covers
This policy applies to:
- the Pruthwi app for Android and iOS, including test versions (such as "Pruthwi Dev") that run against a separate test system;
- the Pruthwi servers the app talks to (the API at
api.pruthwi.zetaspace.co, its database and photo storage); and - this website,
pruthwi.zetaspace.co.
It does not cover other apps or websites you reach from Pruthwi, such as the map or navigation app that opens when an official taps Navigate, or zetaspace.co. Those have their own policies.
3. Who can use Pruthwi
Pruthwi is not open to the public. Every account is created by the Municipality: the super admin creates accounts for officials and councilors, and officials and councilors create accounts for volunteers. Public sign-up is turned off, and the app refuses any sign-in that the Municipality has not set up.
There are four roles: volunteers, who report issues; officials (for example engineers and health inspectors) and ward councilors, who handle reports and manage volunteers; and a super admin, who manages officials and councilors. Every role can file reports. You must be 18 or older to have an account (see Children).
4. Information we collect
4.1 Account information
When the Municipality creates your account, the person creating it enters:
- your full name and email address;
- your mobile phone number (optional);
- your role, and for officials a designation (for example "Assistant Engineer");
- for councilors, your ward; for volunteers, an optional home ward.
We also record who created your account and when, whether it is active or deactivated, whether you still need to change your temporary password, and your preferred language (English or Malayalam). You can change your phone number and language yourself in the app's Profile screen.
4.2 Sign-in information
Sign-in is handled by Google Firebase Authentication. It stores your email address, a securely hashed version of your password (we never see or store your actual password), your account identifier, and sign-in times. To protect accounts, Firebase also processes technical details of sign-in attempts, such as IP address. If you use Forgot password, Firebase sends the reset email to your address.
A new account starts with a temporary password. It is shown once to the person who created your account so they can pass it to you, and is not stored by us. You must replace it with your own password before you can use the app.
4.3 Reports you file
Each report contains:
- the category you chose (for example "Water logging");
- the location of the issue: the point you pinned on the map;
- the location your phone reported when you made the report, and its accuracy. We keep this so officials can see whether, and how far, the pin was moved (it can be moved up to 500 metres);
- an optional description (up to 1,000 characters) and landmark (up to 200 characters);
- the time you made the report on your phone and the time our server received it;
- the ward, which the system works out from the location;
- a unique identifier and a reference number such as
VDK-000123; - your account, as the person who filed it.
Reports must be inside the municipality. The app and the server refuse reports more than 200 metres outside its boundary.
4.4 Photos
You can add up to three photos to a report, from the camera or from your gallery. Photos are optional. Before a photo leaves your phone, the app resizes it, saves it again as a new image and removes all embedded metadata (EXIF), which can include the GPS position where it was taken, the camera model and the original time. A small thumbnail is made as well. When an official resolves a report, they may add "proof" photos of the completed work in the same way.
A photo can still show people, vehicles, number plates or homes. Please frame photos on the issue itself, and avoid capturing faces, number plates, children or the inside of private property wherever you can.
4.5 Activity and audit records
Every action on a report is recorded with who did it and when: when it was created, the first time an official opened it ("seen"), status changes and their notes, internal comments, escalations and priority changes. Management actions (creating, editing, deactivating or reactivating accounts, password resets, changes to categories, and exports of report data) are also logged, including the account identifier and email address of the person who did them.
4.6 Usage and crash information (Firebase Analytics and Crashlytics)
The app includes Google's Firebase Analytics and Firebase Crashlytics. They collect information automatically, which we use to understand how the app is used and to fix problems:
- Analytics: an app-instance identifier, device model, operating system and version, app version, language and screen size, approximate location derived from your IP address (country or region), and events such as first open, sessions and their length, screens viewed and app updates. On Android, this may include the device's advertising identifier where the device makes it available. We do not use it for advertising.
- Crashlytics: when the app crashes or hits a serious error, a report with technical details of the error, the device model, operating system and app version, device state (such as free memory and disk space, orientation) and an installation identifier.
We do not send your name, email address, phone number, report contents, photos or precise location to Firebase Analytics or Crashlytics.
4.7 Server logs
When the app talks to our servers, Google Cloud records technical details of each request: IP address, time, the address requested (which can include a report or account identifier), the result, how long it took and the app's user agent. Our own logs do not record report contents or passwords.
4.8 Map requests
Map images are loaded from OpenStreetMap's tile servers (or a similar map provider the Municipality may switch to). Like any website, the map server receives your IP address, the area of the map you are viewing and the app's name. It does not receive your account details.
4.9 Notifications (when enabled)
Push notifications are planned but not yet switched on. When they are, the app will register a push token for your device with Google Firebase Cloud Messaging and send it to our servers together with the platform (Android or iOS) and app version, so that we can notify you, for example, when the status of your report changes or, for officials, when a new report arrives. Notifications will also be kept in an in-app inbox with their title, text, the report they relate to and whether you have read them. Your phone will ask your permission before notifications are shown, and signing out removes the token.
4.10 Information stored on your phone
- Offline queue. Every report is saved on your phone first, with its location and photos, so nothing is lost without a connection. It is sent automatically when you are back online. Sent reports are removed from the queue within a day. Reports that have not been sent stay on the phone, even if you sign out, until they are sent the next time you sign in or you discard them.
- Cached data: the municipality and ward boundaries, the list of categories, app settings from our server, and copies of report photos you have viewed, so the app loads faster and works offline.
- Preferences: your language and whether ward lines are shown on the map.
- Sign-in session kept by Firebase so you stay signed in.
Uninstalling the app removes all of this from your phone, including any unsent reports.
4.11 This website
This website sets no cookies, has no analytics or trackers, and loads nothing from other sites. It is hosted on Google Firebase Hosting, which keeps standard request logs (such as IP address and browser type) to deliver and protect the site. If you pick a light or dark theme, that choice is saved only in your own browser.
5. What we don't do
- We do not track your location in the background or when the app is closed.
- We do not read your contacts, messages, call history or other files. The app sees only the photos you choose to attach.
- We do not sell your personal data, rent it, or use it for advertising or marketing.
- We do not publish reports, photos or volunteer names. There are no public profiles and no public feed.
- We do not use your data for automated decisions that have legal or similar effects on you.
6. App permissions
| Permission | Why Pruthwi asks for it |
|---|---|
| Location ("while using the app") | To place the report where the issue is, and to show you on the municipality map. Used only while the app is open. Pruthwi does not request background location. |
| Camera | To take photos of the issue you are reporting (and, for officials, proof of the completed work). |
| Photos | To attach photos you already took. The app receives only the photos you pick. |
| Internet | To sign in, send reports, and load maps and report updates. |
| Notifications (when enabled) | To tell you about updates to reports. You can say no and still use the app. |
You can turn any permission off in your phone's settings. Without location you can't pin a new report; everything else keeps working.
7. How we use information
We use personal data only to run Pruthwi for the Municipality, specifically to:
- create and manage accounts, sign you in and keep accounts secure;
- receive reports, place them in the right ward, spot likely duplicates and route them to the officials and councilors responsible;
- let officials and councilors review, prioritise, act on, resolve or refer reports, and contact the person who reported an issue if they need more details;
- show you the progress of your own reports;
- keep a reliable record of reports and of the actions taken on them, for accountability and audit;
- produce statistics for the Municipality, such as open reports per ward or time to resolve;
- find and fix bugs and crashes, improve the app, and protect it against misuse; and
- meet legal obligations and respond to lawful requests.
Legal basis. The Municipality processes your personal data on the basis of the consent you give when you first sign in and accept this policy, and, where it applies, for the legitimate uses permitted by Section 7 of the DPDP Act, including the performance of the Municipality's functions under law. For officials, councilors and the super admin, Pruthwi is used in the course of their public duties.
8. Who can see your information
| Who | What they can see |
|---|---|
| You | Your account details and your own reports: photos, location, status, notes the Municipality writes for you, and proof photos. When an official acts on your report you see their designation (for example "Health Inspector"), never their name. |
| Other volunteers | Nothing that identifies you. If someone starts a report of the same category within 50 metres of an open report from the last 30 days, the app shows them that report's reference number, status, age and distance so they can avoid a duplicate. No name, description or photo is shown. |
| Officials, councilors and the super admin | All reports in the municipality, including the reporter's name and phone number, the pinned and phone-reported locations, photos, the full timeline and internal comments. They can call you about a report. They also see the account details of the people they manage. Report exports (spreadsheet files) include the reporter's name but not their phone number or email. |
| Zetaspace | Authorised Zetaspace staff can access data only as needed to operate, secure, support and fix Pruthwi, under confidentiality obligations and the Municipality's instructions. |
| The public | Nothing. Reports are not published and photos are kept in private storage. |
10. Where data is stored
Pruthwi's server, database and photo storage are in Singapore, the nearest region to Kerala that our providers offer. Data handled by Google Firebase may be processed in other countries where Google operates. All such transfers are made to providers bound by contract to protect the data, and we will follow any restriction on transfers outside India that the Government of India notifies under the DPDP Act.
11. How we protect it
- All traffic between the app and our servers is encrypted (HTTPS/TLS), and data is encrypted at rest by our providers.
- Photos are kept in private storage. They can only be uploaded or viewed through links our server signs for a specific person, which expire after 15 minutes (uploads) or one hour (viewing).
- Every request is checked against your account and role in our database. A deactivated account is refused immediately and its sessions are ended.
- New accounts must replace their temporary password before they can do anything else.
- Photo metadata is removed on your phone before upload.
- The app never holds keys to the database or storage; server secrets are kept in a managed secret store.
- Actions on reports and accounts are recorded in an audit trail.
- Access by Zetaspace staff is limited to people who need it.
No system is perfectly secure. If a personal data breach occurs, we will inform affected users and the Data Protection Board of India as the DPDP Act requires. You can help by keeping your password private and telling your administrator straight away if your phone is lost.
12. How long we keep it
We keep personal data only for as long as it is needed for the purposes in this policy, or for as long as the law requires.
- Reports, photos and their timelines are municipal records. They are kept for as long as the Municipality needs them for its functions, accountability and record-keeping obligations.
- Account details are kept while your account exists. If your account is deactivated, they are kept so that past reports and actions remain properly attributed, until you ask for deletion or they are no longer needed.
- Logs, usage statistics and crash reports are kept for limited periods and then deleted automatically by our providers.
- Data on your phone is kept as described in section 4.10.
When data is no longer needed, we delete it or make it anonymous.
13. Your rights
Under the DPDP Act you have the right to:
- Access: get a summary of the personal data we hold about you, how it is processed, and who it has been shared with;
- Correction: have inaccurate or incomplete data corrected or updated. You can change your phone number and language in the app; for anything else, ask your administrator or write to us;
- Erasure: have your personal data erased when it is no longer needed, subject to what the law requires us to keep (see Deleting your account);
- Withdraw consent at any time. You will no longer be able to use Pruthwi, but this does not affect processing that happened before;
- Grievance redressal: have a complaint about how we handle your data heard and answered; and
- Nominate another person to exercise these rights for you in the event of your death or incapacity.
To use any of these rights, email privacy@zetaspace.co from the email address on your account. We may need to confirm your identity first. We will respond as soon as we can, and within the time allowed under the DPDP Act and its rules. If you are not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the Data Protection Board of India.
14. Deleting your account
You can ask for your Pruthwi account to be deleted at any time by writing to privacy@zetaspace.co or asking your administrator. Within 30 days, we delete your sign-in account and erase your name, email address and phone number. Reports you filed remain as municipal records, no longer linked to you by name. The full details are on the Delete your account page.
15. Children
Pruthwi is only for people aged 18 or over, and the Municipality does not create accounts for children. If we learn that an account belongs to someone under 18, we will deactivate it and delete their personal data, apart from reports the Municipality needs to keep as records, which will no longer be linked to them by name.
16. Changes to this policy
We will update this policy when Pruthwi changes, for example when notifications are switched on, or when the law changes. The date at the top shows the latest version. If we make an important change to how your data is used, we will tell you in the app before it takes effect and, where the law requires, ask for your consent again.
17. Contact and grievances
For questions, requests or complaints about your personal data, contact our grievance officer. Requests that are for the Municipality to decide are forwarded to it.
- privacy@zetaspace.co
- Post
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Grievance Officer, Pruthwi
Zetaspace Intelligence Private Limited
Centre for Innovation & Entrepreneurship
University of Calicut, Thenhipalam
Kozhikode, Keralam 673635, India - Data Fiduciary
- Vadakara Municipality, Vadakara, Kozhikode district, Keralam