THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The mass Covid-19 vaccination of seniors that began on Monday saw immediate response from beneficiaries as the online portal opened for registration though the health system failed to meet the demand.Seniors also turned up in large numbers for offline vaccine registration even though the facility was announced without much publicity.
The implementation on first day was mired in technical glitches and confusion. The registration on CoWin, an online platform for vaccination, was affected with technical snags. There were instances wherein the beneficiaries could make the registration but unable to select the slots. Those who received slots on the first day had to wait longer to get the jab.
A 65-year-old man from Nedumangad complained that he was turned away from the vaccination centre at Nedumangad taluk office after keeping him waiting for hours. The spot registrations added confusion as the health authorities could not manage the large turnout at a few offline vaccine registration centres. “The spot registration centres were included in the last minute. The crowd got mixed with the beneficiaries in the first phase,” said an officer of health department. According to him, the issues will be sorted in the coming days.
CM, MINISTERS TO TAKE VACCINE
Health Minister K K Shailaja has said that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and ministers will take the Covid-19 vaccine soon. The registration process will be completed in next two days. The minister said she wanted to take vaccine in the first stage to allay concerns of public. However a specific instruction
from Prime Minister’s Office made her to back off and waited for her turn in the priority list. “It was delightful to see the Prime Minister taking the vaccine. There shall be no hesitation in taking the vaccine,” she said.