SIMPLY PUT: Here is how to register and what documents to carry for the COVID-19 vaccination drive from March 1

• India embarked on a new vaccination phase to inoculate a massive chunk of the population aged above 60 and 45-59 with comorbidities.
• It plans to reach around 27 crore people who are on the priority list for vaccination after the frontline workers.
• The beneficiaries will be able to self-register in advance by downloading the CO-WIN 2.0 app.
• The government has listed seven photo identity documents such as Aadhaar Card, Passport, Voter ID, among others, to be used for online registration on the CO-WIN app.
• While the people above 60 will be required to verify their age through one of the seven photo Identity cards, those above 45 and having comorbidities will have to attest proof of their underlying conditions.

The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi today kick-started the third and the most extensive phase, yet, of the vaccination drive against Covid-19 in India. Modi received the first dose of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi, on Monday, right before the country started the drive to inoculate a massive chunk of the population aged above 60 and above 45 with comorbidities.

As India embarks on the new phase of vaccination, it plans to reach around 27 crore people who are on the priority list for vaccination after the frontline workers.

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How to get a coronavirus vaccine in India?

You would be required to register in order to receive the vaccine doses. The eligible beneficiaries can register themselves on the government’s app for the Covid-19 vaccination drive, Co-WIN, which opened registration today at 9 AM.

The beneficiaries can also avail of on-site registrations wherein they can walk into identified centres, register, and get vaccinated. Under the facilitated cohort registration, the state/Union Territory governments will take a proactive lead. Specific dates for Covid vaccination will be decided where target groups of potential beneficiaries will be vaccinated.

The government has integrated features into CO-WIN app to locate nearby Coronavirus vaccination centres (CVC) across the country. You can also use the MapmyIndia application to find the nearest CVC for walkins. MapmyIndia was the winner of AatmaNirbhar App Challenge organised by Govt of India in August last year.

Here is how to register for the coronavirus vaccine in India

The beneficiaries will be able to self-register in advance by downloading the CO-WIN 2.0 portal and government applications such as Aarogya Setu. The government upgraded Co-WIN, which was being used in the initial two phases of the vaccination for immunisation of healthcare and frontline workers. It was created for real-time monitoring of Covid-19 vaccine delivery.

The eligible beneficiaries will be able to register simply on the portal using their mobile number following a step by step process.

What to do after registering on the CO-WIN app?

Once the registration is completed, the application will show the government and private hospitals serving as COVID Vaccination Centres (CVC) with the available schedules. You would be given an option to choose the CVC of choice and book an appointment for vaccination. The vaccination will be free at the government facilities and paid at private facilities. The government has capped the price at private hospitals at ₹250 per shot for the vaccine. The COVID-19 vaccine recipients may not be able to pick and choose among the two vaccines available in India — Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin and Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Covishield, which is manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII).

A person can register up to four beneficiaries with a single mobile number. However, you would be required to carry identity proofs for all beneficiaries separately.

What documents will be required to register on the CO-WIN app?

These are the seven photo identity documents that the government has listed to be used for online registration on the CO-WIN app:

• Aadhaar Card
• Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC)
• Passport
• Driving License
• PAN Card
• NPR Smart Card
• Pension Document with photograph

While the people above 60 will only be required to verify their age through seven of the photo Identity cards, those above 45 and having comorbidities will have to attest proof of their underlying conditions.

The government has prepared a list of 20 comorbidities, including diabetes and heart failure, with hospital admission in the past one year, prioritised in the third phase of the Covid-19 vaccination drive. Check out the full list of 20 comorbidities here.

A simplified one-page certificate showing all the prioritised co-morbid conditions can be downloaded from the beneficiary portal, which they would have to be signed by a registered medical practitioner. The certificate can either be uploaded on Co-WIN 2.0 by the beneficiary while the beneficiary can carry self-registering or a hard copy to the CVC.

Only one time registration is needed and after vaccination, a certificate will be issued to the beneficiary — on the portal to those who registered digitally — and physically to those who got registered on-site. The second scheduled dose of vaccine will be given at the same facility where the beneficiaries receive their first shots.

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