Reliance Jio, Airtel, BSNL replace default caller tune with coronavirus advisory

The Union Health Ministry has asked mobile service providers to implement pre-call awareness on their respective connections

Both Reliance Jio and BSNL have implemented a caller tune wherein a coughing sound is followed by a message on the coronavirus outbreak. (Bloomberg)

The total number of confirmed cases of Coronavirus have crossed the 1,00,000 mark and over 300 people have died across the world. The number of confirmed cases in India too have been increasing steadily. With five more confirmed cases in Kerala, the total number of cases detected in India stands at 34. Amid the ongoing crisis, the Indian government has taken several measures, including setting up a 24x7 helpline number, to roll out authentic information about the virus outbreak. Now, the government is asking telecom companies to make their users aware about the preventive measures about the virus outbreak.

As per reports, the Union Health Ministry has asked mobile service providers to implement pre-call awareness on their respective connections. Both Reliance Jio and BSNL have implemented a caller tune wherein a coughing sound is followed by a message on the coronavirus outbreak. The message can be heard in both Hindi and in English

"Always protect your face with a handkerchief or tissue while coughing or sneezing. Regularly clean hands with soap. Avoid touching your face, eyes, or nose. If someone has cough, fever, or breathlessness maintain one metre distance. If needed, visit your nearest health centre immediately," the message, which is followed by a helpline number +91-11-23797-8046, says.

 

Health Ministry Official: To educate people on the preventive measures against the spread of #COVIDー19, the Central government has put pre-call awareness messages on BSNL and Jio phone connections

— ANI (@ANI) March 7, 2020

One interesting fact about the message on Jio's network is that the automated caller tune service is being activated for the users who do not have a pre-assigned caller tune. For users who have already activated a caller tune, nothing changes. Additionally, users can deactivate this caller tune simply by activating a new caller tune.

Similarly, Bharti Airtel too has started implementing a similar mechanism to raise awareness about the pandemic among its users. However, the caller tune about the Coronavirus awareness seems to be working when Airtel users call other Airtel users as of now.