Srinagar: Three years ago, Haider Ali Punjabi, a young developer from Srinagar, launched a local Iftar timing application called ‘Iftar Kar.’ He said the aim was to make a local application for Kashmir for the holy month of Ramadhan. The young developer did not stop there and kept enhancing the application.
While talking to Greater Kashmir, Haider said that he wanted Kashmir to have its own simple and top-notch iftar app as the region is Muslim-dominant.
“In 2020, I developed the application keeping in mind the COVID lockdown. At that time, newspapers were not in circulation, which used to be one of the main sources of knowing iftar timings on a daily basis. Since mobile is in everyone’s hands, I thought of developing this app with timings as per the Kashmir location. I also kept options of the timings as per major school of thoughts so that the application will be an inclusive one,” Haider said.
He said that on the request of Kashmiris living abroad, he worked on adding global timings so that not only Kashmiris living outside Kashmir but Muslims from other parts of the world can use it.
“Many students who study outside Kashmir requested me to add global timings. The app is very easy to use and takes minimal space on your mobile, which is why everyone prefers it. I wanted to have a local platform that would benefit everyone. The application gives a countdown to iftar and Sehri with a percentage of the remaining time to iftar and Sehri, which makes it interesting. I have also kept the important daily duas of Ramadhan and duas of breaking and starting the fast in the app.,” Haider said.
Haider, who is pursuing his masters in computer applications from Cluster University Srinagar, said that the response has been good, which has encouraged him to enhance the app. He said that one of the main features of the app is that it works on slow internet and can also work without the internet.
He said that in the first year of launch, the app had over 1 lakh users, which doubled in the next year. He said that in the first 10 days of this Ramadhan, the application has crossed 1.5 lakh users, and he expects four lakh users by the end of Ramadhan.
“I will continue to improve on this application, and I am aiming to develop a full-fledged app for this platform with more features,” Haider added.__GK News
