More than 200 beneficiaries were inoculated with the second dose of the covid-19 vaccine on Tuesday compared to 71 which was done just a day before. However, the technical glitch in the Co-Win continues to be a problem at the vaccine centres as the names of first-time beneficiaries were still missing for the second consecutive day.
According to the data, 6,215 health care and frontline workers were vaccinated in the last 24 hours, of which 212 were given a second dose. So far 1,25,625 beneficiaries have been inoculated since the vaccination drive started across Mumbai.
Meanwhile, for the third consecutive day, more FLWs have been vaccinated compared to HCWs at the 23 centres across the city. On Tuesday, 70 per cent FLWs and 59 per cent of HCWs were inoculated.
Civic officials said the software didn’t recognise that beneficiaries eligible for the second dose had already taken the first shot. In a few centres, the software crashed at the beginning of the day and remained sluggish. For many who took the vaccine on January 16, the software flashed that they had not completed 28 days.
Even for many who got the second dose on Monday, the software generated a provisional certificate saying this was their first dose. In Mumbai, only five centres could even administer the second dose, while in most others, the software did not support even the creation of vaccine sessions. Additional municipal commissioner Suresh Kakani said healthcare workers should visit vaccination centres only after receiving text messages or calls from the local ward office.
According to experts, the first dose of the vaccine helps recognise the virus and ramp up the immune system which helps the body fight against diseases. The second dose is called the booster shot, which helps in further boosting the immune system.
“In the public health set-up, one needs to follow the guidelines and if our national immunisation guidelines say the second dose must be taken on completion of four weeks, we should abide by it,” said an expert.
