Facebook’s WhatsApp messaging app icon. Photo: AFP/VNA MEITy’s new rules require major social media platforms like WhatsApp to “trace” the origin of specific messages sent on the messaging service. However, according to a WhatsApp spokesperson, asking messaging apps to trace chats is equivalent to asking WhatsApp to track every single message sent on the app. This would break end-to-end encryption and fundamentally compromise user privacy. The spokesperson stressed that along with civil society and experts around the world, WhatsApp has always opposed requests to violate user privacy, but the application is owned by this social network Facebook. We will also continue to work with the Government of India to find practical solutions to keep everyone safe, including responding to valid legal requests for the information WhatsApp makes available. Earlier, the press reported that social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Google and Twitter could face legal action in India if they do not comply with a new regulation by the government to strengthen control. control of intermediary platforms, effective May 26. Failure to comply with the above provisions will result in the social media networks being stripped of their intermediary platform status and immunity and will face criminal action under Indian law. The above regulations also require social media companies to appoint a resident grievance officer, regulatory compliance officer and basic contact person, as well as to disclose detailed information about the company. details of these people on their website, along with physical contact addresses. The regulation also requires traceability of the originator of the message and includes a provision for voluntary verification as a way to establish user identity.

With the record-high new Covid-19 cases, a nation of 1.3 billion people needs huge amounts of medical oxygen every day to cater to the treatment of its patients. This has caused a boom in the black market oxygen trade, where only the very rich can afford it, and families desperately looking for oxygen for loved ones with Covid-19 are susceptible to scams. “On the black market, an oxygen tank, which costs between $ 81 and $ 135 depending on size, is currently being pushed up to $ 812 to $ 1,354. This condition is an indirect cause of the death of patients who have no relationship or money, ”said Divyansh Pandey (25 years old) volunteer in the state of Uttar Pradesh, said. Medical oxygen in India has become an expensive commodity due to the soaring cases of Covid-19. Photo: Getty. The average price of a medical oxygen on the black market, about $ 1,080, is higher than the average monthly income of 1% of the country’s richest people. Conventional drugs, which cost $ 67, are now pushed up to $ 810. Pandey has helped dozens of Covid-19 patients find hospital beds, medical oxygen, oxygen generators and essential medicines. Pandey said he was forced to consider the supply from the black market after repeatedly failing to find and buy the items at the original prices. “The saddest thing is that the black market is openly open and hoarders casually sell it on social media. Non-governmental organizations and official sources often distribute these items for free or sell at original prices, but in small quantities and often out of stock quickly, sometimes within an hour. ” Crisis India currently records more than 20 million cases of SARS-CoV-2, more than 220,000 deaths. Experts say the reason for this dire number is the lack of beds and medicine. “When demand is too much and supply is insufficient, we are forced to sell imported oxygen generators for 10 times the price,” said an anonymous supplier at the Delhi black market. According to data submitted by the Indian government to the Supreme Court, the country has three times more medical oxygen than it needs in 12 states, with about 16,000 tons of liquid oxygen to meet the estimated demand of 4,880. tons last week. However, activists point out that the system only monitors hospital resources, not those needed by Covid-19 patients in home isolation. Although Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that oxygen production has increased 60% to address the crisis, volunteers and suppliers pointed out that problems such as transportation and logistics could hinder the arrival of oxygen cylinders. people’s hands. The price of medical oxygen in the black market has been pushed up many times because of the high demand. Photo: AFP. The lack of oxygen has even made many Indians recklessly experiment with making oxygen at home. At the end of April, many YouTubers posted videos showing people how to make oxygen using easy-to-find sources, available at home. Many of these are new high school students. “We created oxygen in the lab before using electrolysis and easy-to-find chemicals like potassium permanganate and hydrogen peroxide,” said Kirtharth Tiwari (16), whose video received more than 50,000 views. . Then, Tiwari also made the next video instructing people how to filter oxygen to use, avoiding the risk of an exothermic reaction by using a cold storage bag. “Two people reached out and said that following my instructions worked,” said Rahul Soni, another YouTuber with more than 300,000 video views. However, experts warn against doing such experiments at home because it can lead to dangerous explosions. YouTube has removed both videos for violation of community guidelines. Last week, the Delhi High Court ordered the state government to cut back to stop the proliferation of a “black oxygen” market. However, the situation is still developing complicatedly.

A continuous red-fire manual cremation in India. Photo: Reuters For the fourth day in a row, on April 25, India set a global record for the number of new infections, stemming from a new virus variant sweeping, overwhelming every effort by the populous nation. world number 2. According to AP, the report of the Indian Ministry of Health on April 25 recorded 349,691 new cases, bringing the total number of cases in this country to over 16.9 million cases, the second most in the world after the US. In addition, there were 2,767 deaths in the past 24 hours, pushing the number of COVID-19 deaths in India to 192,311. Experts say that the actual death toll could be much greater, since it does not include suspected cases, and many deaths from COVID-19 are attributed to underlying medical conditions. . The Indian crisis is most evident in cemeteries, cremations and cremations, or in heartbreaking images of a series of suffocating patients on their way to a hospital due to lack of oxygen. India set a world record for the fourth consecutive day with the number of new infections reaching nearly 350,000 people. Photo: Reuters Cremation sites in the Indian capital New Delhi are running out of space and fiery cremation rigs lit up all night in other heavily affected cities. In the city center of Bhopal, a number of cremators have increased their capacity from a few dozen bodies to over 50 a day. However, bodies awaiting cremation still have to wait. At the city’s Bhadbhada Vishram Ghat crematorium, workers said they cremated more than 110 people on April 24, although figures from the city government of 1.8 million people only report the total number of deaths. because COVID-19 that day was 10 people. Mamtesh Sharma, a location official, said: “The virus is devouring the people of our city like a monster.” Watch the video of the painful scene of disinfection and cremation of the body of the COVID-19 victim in India (Source: Sky news) The massive influx of bodies has forced cremators to skip all the personal rituals and rituals that Hindus believe will help liberate souls. “We burned the bodies as soon as we arrived,” said Mr. Sharma. It was as if we were in the middle of a war. A monk rushed out of the cremation area of ​​COVID-19’s body after the ceremony. Photo: Getty Images Cremation of the body of COVID-19 victim with firewood in New Delhi on April 24. Photo: Reuters A grave digger at the largest Muslim cemetery in New Delhi, where 1,000 people have been buried during the pandemic, said more bodies are now being moved than last year and that the site will soon run out of space. The situation is equally dire at hospitals that are already packed with patients. People desperately wait in line to die, sometimes they stop breathing in the outer streets while waiting to see a doctor. Indian health officials are currently looking to expand intensive care areas and increase oxygen supplies. Patient COVID-19 was taken to a hospital in New Delhi. Photo: AFP A manual cremation ground for victims of COVID-19 in New Delhi. Photo: Getty Images Hospitals and patient families themselves struggle to procure the scarce medical equipment that is being sold at exponentially increasing prices. The crisis contradicted the government’s statement that “no one in the country will be left without oxygen,” in an April 24 statement by Indian Attorney General Tushar Mehta before the Supreme Court of Delhi. The crisis of the new COVID-19 wave is a huge failure for a country that only in January, Prime Minister Modi declared victory over the epidemic and is proud to be the “pharmacy of the world” – home global vaccine production, which is a model for other developing countries. Off guard against the spike in infections, the federal government has asked industrialists to increase production of oxygen and other drugs that are in short supply. However, health experts say India has a whole year to prepare, but they have not. People wait in line to pump more oxygen into the tank, to save patient COVID-19. Photo: DailyMail Dr. Krutika Kuppalli, Associate Professor of Infectious Diseases at the Medical University of South Carolina (USA), said the Indian government had “reacted very passively to this situation instead of actively”. Ms. Kuppalli said that the government should be using 2020, when the virus is better controlled, to prepare plans to tackle in the event of an outbreak, while at the same time “stockpiling drugs and developing relationships. Public-private partnerships to support the production of essential resources in the event of such a situation ”. “Most importantly, they should look at what’s going on in other parts of the world and understand that the possibility of India in a similar situation is only a matter of time,” said Ms. Kuppalli. Associate Professor Kuppalli called the Indian government’s early statements on pandemic victory a “mistake”, as it encouraged people to relax prevention measures when they should have continued to adhere to it. strict spacing, wear masks and avoid crowds. People waiting to be vaccinated against COVID in Mumbai, India Photo: AP Containers of oxygen were transported on board, delivered to India. Photo: Reuters Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is facing criticism for allowing Hindu festivals and massive election rallies, which experts suspect has contributed to the speed of the spread. of the virus. In such an election rally just two weeks ago, Modi could barely hide his joy when declaring to supporters in the state of West Bengal: “I have never seen such a large crowd.” . At that time, SARS-CoV-2 had begun to strike again and experts warned that a fatal increase was inevitable. White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on April 25 that the US was “deeply concerned” about a serious COVID-19 outbreak in India. “We are working around the clock to deploy more supplies and support to our friends and partners in India as they bravely fight this pandemic,” said Mr. Sullivan on Twitter. Neighboring Pakistan also expressed support for people in India. Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said it offered to provide relief assistance including breathing apparatus, oxygen supply unit, digital X-ray machine, personal protective equipment (PPE) and related items.