Two Covid-19 vaccines have been approved by the Drug Control General of India (DCGI)’s approval for restricted emergency use. Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech are ready to supply vaccines for the first phase of the vaccination which will include frontline workers followed by people who are above 50 years old. For further vaccination process, the central government has introduced an application named Co-WIN (Covid Vaccine Intelligence Work).
The IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on December 23, 2020, announced a challenge for strengthening the Co-Win system which will be a digitised platform for the roll-out of the vaccine in the country. Prasad even announced a cash prize of Rs 40 lakh and Rs 20 lakh respectively for the top two contestants.
Co-Win app availability
First of all, the Co-Win app is not functional yet and if you have downloaded any app from Google Play Store or Apple’s App Store, it is not going to work. You should refrain from downloading such apps or provide them access to your personal data.
The application is currently in the pre-product stage. It has the data of health officials who will be first in line to get the vaccination. Over 75 lakh health officials have registered for it already.
How to register
Currently, common people cannot register for the upcoming vaccine for the coronavirus pandemic as only officials have access to it for now. Once the app is up and running, it will have four modules — User administrator module, beneficiary registration, vaccination and beneficiary acknowledgment, and status updation.
Once live, the Co-WIN app or website will give three options for registration including self-registration, individual registration, and bulk upload. The logistics of it have not yet been revealed. Maybe the government will organise camps where people can go and officials will get them registered for the vaccine. In addition, surveyors and district administrators will also be able to register multiple beneficiaries.
Documents needed and cost
People will need to upload a photo identity in order to register. It can be an Aadhar Card, Driving License, PAN Card, and others. Union Health Minister Dr. Harshvardhan has announced that the vaccination will be free for frontline workers. The cost to the general public has not been announced yet.6
