INDIA BANS 118 CHINESE APPS

NEW DELHI : India on Wednesday banned 118 more Chinese apps as the backlash intensified against Beijing over an increasingly bitter border showdown between two giant neighbours.

The government said the apps - including the popular video game PUBC and other services provided by Chinese Internet giant Tencent - promoted activities ''prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order''.

India and China, which fought a border war in 1962, have been embroiled in a series of deadly clashes and showdowns on their disputed Himalayan frontier in recent weeks.

India had already banned 59 Chinese apps - including the video sharing platform TikTok - after the June battle. Another 47 were added in July.

The PUBC mobile app has millions of young users in India. The company said it had been made aware of the government action but had no comment. [AFP]