Evening briefing: WhatsApp's India exit threat; IMD's 'warmest year' warning amid heatwave, and more

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WhatsApp, owned by Meta Inc., has warned of exiting India if compelled to compromise the encryption of messages and calls on its messaging platform. The lawyer representing WhatsApp in the Delhi High Court stated, "As a platform, we are saying, if we are told to break encryption, then WhatsApp goes." When asked by a bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan if the issue has been considered in any other country, the lawyer said, "There is no such rule anywhere else in the world. Not even in Brazil. We will have to keep a complete chain and we don't know which messages will be asked to be decrypted. It means millions and millions of messages will have to be stored for a number of years." Dig deeper

The Centre has said the law empowers it to expect such entities to create safe cyberspace and counter "illegal content" either themselves or by assisting law enforcement agencies. (File)

More news: Why is your WhatsApp app green now? Meta rolls out changes, one will simply awe you

While the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued warnings about severe heatwave conditions in various parts of the country, an IMD official has forecasted that this year might break records as the warmest ever recorded. In an interview with CNBC-TV18, DS Pai from the IMD stated that the maximum temperatures this year could surpass the previous record set in 2023. On Thursday, Odisha experienced severe heatwave conditions, with officials reporting Jharsuguda recording the highest temperature at 43.8 degrees Celsius. Baripada followed closely at 43.6 degrees Celsius, trailed by Nuapada (43.5), Talcher (43.4), and Boudh (43.2). Dig deeper

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More news: IMD issues red alert over severe heatwave; rainfall likely to bring relief in these states

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India News

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In Bengaluru, a nephrologist came to the rescue of a woman at a polling booth when she fell ill while waiting in line. Dr Ganesh Srinivasa Prasad, who specializes in nephrology and transplant medicine, recounted how he administered CPR to the woman in front of him as soon as she showed signs of distress. "As I was waiting in the queue, one lady had syncope and cardiac arrest in front of me. There was no pulse and I started immediate CPR. Luckily she got ROSC within minutes," Dr Srinivasa wrote on X (formerly Twitter), sharing a photo of the woman lying down on the ground and a video of her being helped on to a stretcher by the police and others. Dig deeper

Business News

OpenAI, a relatively small company compared to industry giants such as Meta Platforms, Alphabet, Amazon, and Apple, gained a significant advantage by introducing its ChatGPT chatbot powered by artificial intelligence. Despite its partnership with tech giant Microsoft, OpenAI's impressive accomplishments remained undiminished. Consequently, many others have since rushed to embrace AI technology to gain a competitive edge. This raises the question: what's next for OpenAI to maintain its leadership position? GPT-5 appears to be the probable solution. Dig deeper

Global Matters

Comedian Ellen DeGeneres made a remarkable comeback to the stand-up stage with "Ellen's Last Stand...Up Tour" in West Hollywood on Wednesday night. DeGeneres' show on NBC went off air in 2022 due to a toxic workplace controversy that damaged her reputation as the most beloved host. In 2020, former staff members of the show accused her of creating a culture where she held a dominant position and allowed executives to engage in alleged bullying, bigotry, and sexual harassment. During her first comedy tour since 2018, DeGeneres acknowledged that being called the "most hated person in America" had severely damaged her self-esteem. Amidst a packed house at Club Largo, she mocked her downfall by recalling being "kicked out of show business" for being "mean", reported Rolling Stone. Dig deeper

Entertainment Focus

When director Hari helms a film, audiences can expect an abundance of adrenaline-pumping action and intense fight sequences throughout the movie. Renowned for his works like "Samy" and "Singam," Hari reunites with actor Vishal for the third time in "Rathnam" after a decade. True to Hari's style, the film unfolds in the rural landscapes of Tamil Nadu, this time along the border with Andhra Pradesh. The narrative kicks off in 1994 in the hills of Tirupati, where three bandits launch an attack on a bus, resulting in the deaths of 26 people. The investigating police officer is also murdered in the process. Fast forward a decade later, the story shifts to Vellore, where a 12-year-old orphan intervenes to save Pannerselvan (played by Samuthirakani) from an assailant, taking matters into his own hands by eliminating the attacker. Dig deeper

Lifestyle and Health

Being obese is a serious condition that can cause numerous other fatal diseases and conditions as one's chances of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, problems with joints and other conditions increase when one keeps an unhealthy weight. Thus, there are numerous ways in which resolving obesity problems quickly and effectively could improve life and bariatric surgery, usually referred to as weight-loss surgery, offers an important advance for those facing obesity. In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Sudhir Jadhav, Consultant - Bariatric and Minimally Invasive Surgery at Manipal Hospital in Pune's Kharadi, suggested that before deciding to proceed with weight loss surgery, there are a few things that patients should discuss with their doctor. Dig deeper

Sports Goings

The T20 World Cup this year will likely see the presence of both, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, in India's 15-member squad. Both players have been impressive in the ongoing IPL so far, even as Kohli's performance in Thursday night's match against Sunrisers Hyderabad came under significant scanner due to a low strike rate (51 off 43 balls). Regardless, the 35-year-old RCB star continues to hold the Orange Cap for the season. Rohit and Kohli were away from the shortest format in international cricket ever since last year's T20 World Cup, remaining absent throughout 2023. However, the two stalwarts made a comeback to the side earlier this year during the side's T20I series against Afghanistan; while Kohli had a quiet outing, Rohit smashed a brilliant century after two successive ducks in the series. Dig deeper

That's all we have at this hour in our Evening briefing. Catch you tomorrow morning.

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