Pejawar seer confers ‘Rashtra Ratna Prashasti’ on Narayana Murthy

New Delhi, Apr 29: WhatsApp on Tuesday said it will now allow up to eight people to connect on a group video call as an increasing number of people turn to digital platforms to connect with friends and family amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Facebook-owned company said over the last month, people on average are spending over 15 billion minutes talking each day on WhatsApp calls, well above a typical day before the pandemic.

"...we see that people all over the world are turning to voice and video calling on WhatsApp more than ever before. Group calling has been particularly useful and our users have asked to connect with more people at once," WhatsApp said in a blogpost.

Starting Tuesday, the company is doubling the number of participants one can have on a WhatsApp video or voice call from 4 to 8 people at a time, it added.

WhatsApp emphasised that like written messages, all calls on its platform are protected with end-to-end encryption.

"We have built group calling in a way that makes it available for as many users as possible, including people on lower-end devices and slow network conditions," it added.

Also Read: Coronavirus India update: State-wise total number of confirmed cases, deaths

WhatsApp said that to access the new, higher participant limit on WhatsApp calls, all participants in a call need to update to the latest version of WhatsApp available on iPhone or Android.

Video calling tools like Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Zoom and others have also seen a significant jump in userbase and traffic as people connect while maintaining social distancing amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Last week, Facebook had introduced Messenger Rooms that will soon hold up to 50 people with no time limit.

It had added that the company will also add ways to create rooms from Instagram Direct, WhatsApp and Portal.

Noting that between WhatsApp and Messenger, more than 700 million accounts participate in calls every day, Facebook had said, adding that video calling on Messenger and WhatsApp more than doubled in many countries.

Also, views of Facebook Live and Instagram Live videos have also increased significantly in March, it said.

Bengaluru, Mar 21: Three new COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Karnataka, taking the total number of infections to 18, the state government said on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, Health Minister B Sriramulu giving details about one positive case said, a 32-year old person from Gauribidanur in Chikkaballapura district, who has returned from Mecca has been confirmed for coronavirus infection.

The person has been admitted in a designated isolated hospital for treatment, he said in a tweet.

Details regarding the other two patients are still awaited.

The mid-day situation update by the government also said a circular has been issued to Health and Family Welfare Department officials and staff at all levels to work even on Sundays and general holidays without fail till March 31 in view of COVID-19.

A total of 48 government hospitals and 35 private hospitals have been identified as first respondent hospitals for the case management of COVID-19 cases, it said.

Mental health counselling is being done for positive COVID-19 cases and suspects in the identified hospitals and quarantined persons at home and hospital.

A total of 4,390 counselling sessions have been held till date, it added.

Sriramulu in a tweet, also said the government as a precautionary measure is planning to install thermal test CC cameras at government offices and certain important places.

Mangaluru, Feb 8: Professional services company Cognizant on Friday opened a new facility in Mangaluru, expanding its presence in Karnataka. Located in the heart of the city, the new 100,000 sq- ft facility can accommodate more than 1,100 employees, the NASDAQ-listed company said in a statement.

Cognizant has had an association with Mangaluru since 2011 when it acquired CoreLogic Global Services Private Limited (CoreLogic India), the India-based captive operations of CoreLogic, one of the largest real estate information and analytics provider in the US market.

From its existing centre in Mangaluru, Cognizant provides consulting, enterprise applications and business process services in the area of mortgage processing covering property taxes, research and investigations, property data warehousing and management of geospatial data.

The company currently employs more than 600 professionals in Mangaluru, more than 50 per cent of whom are women.

In addition to experienced professionals, Cognizant also hires fresh graduates for its Mangaluru centre from leading institutions such as Sahyadari Institute of Technology and Management, Manipal Institute of Technology, N.M.A.M. Institute of Technology, St Joseph's College of Engineering, Canara Engineering College, N.I.T.K. Surathkal, PA College of Engineering and Srinivas College of Engineering, as mortgage origination and servicing specialists, business analysts, consultants, automation specialists and software engineers.

In Karnataka, Cognizant also has operations in Bengaluru and Mysuru. The company has more than 28,000 professionals in Bengaluru and nearly 700 professionals in Mysuru.

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