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How Karnataka vexed its vaccination strategy
Bengaluru Tech savvy Bengalureans, with their hacks and skills, are managing to get vaccination slots in centres that are 40-80kms around India’s IT capital that is leading to an uneven inoculation drive in Karnataka
Bengaluru Tech savvy Bengalureans, with their hacks and skills, are managing to get vaccination slots in centres that are 40-80kms around India’s IT capital that is leading to an uneven inoculation drive in Karnataka.
A sizable section of persons were seen posting questions to the police on Twitter, seeking information on if it was safe to travel to other districts like Bengaluru Rural, Tumakuru and Chikballapur among other nearby districts to get the vaccine.
Salil Bagai, a 29-year-old scientist with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) travelled nearly 80 kms to Chintamani to get his shot along with six others from his apartment in Ramamurthy Nagar, in East Bengaluru.
“I have been trying to book a slot since May 1 with two browsers and laptops opened but could not get one,” Bagai told Hindustan Times. Even his office could not manage to get vaccinations done, prompting the young scientist to scout for slots on his own.
An alert that about 130 slots opened up in a hospital in Chintamani was circulated on their apartment WhatsApp group on Sunday night, which led him and at least six others booking slots.
Bagai is among many from Bengaluru who have been using these tech hacks to get slots booked as Bengaluru’s centres running full with most of them reporting severe shortage of vaccines. The move to go to another district has also come under some criticism online as this would deprive locals a chance to get inoculated only because they are not techsavvy or do not have online tools .
At least two persons who booked slots in Chikkaballapur have since cancelled citing that such a practice would lead to an uneven distribution of vaccine.
But such has been the experience of most persons in Bengaluru and other parts of the country between the age groups between 18-44 who have been trying to register themselves on CoWin app and get a slot.
“Most people just register on CoWin and think they can get vaccinated. But there is an important step which is to schedule an appointment. Explaining this to people is taking up most of our time which we can treat more Covid-19 patients,” said one government doctor, requesting not to be named.
The BS Yediyurappa-led Karnataka government has announced a lockdown to contain the raging pandemic but its lack of preparedness is leading to an acute shortage of hospital beds, medicines and oxygen. Touts, in collusion with doctors and government officials, have been accused of selling hospital beds to medicines to even oxygen in the black market.
Yediyurappa had stated that his government aims to vaccinate around 300,000 persons per day but it has fallen short of its own targets, according to the daily bulletin of the state health department. As a result, the vaccination drive has been slow and not kept in pace with the infections in the state. There were 80,823 vaccinations done till 3.30 pm on Monday that takes the total to 10,608,539, according to the bulletin.
But only 2,115,571 people have received both doses.
K Sudhakar, Karnataka’s minister for health, family welfare and medical education on Monday said that the government is mulling to postpone the vaccination of persons between 18-44 till the lockdown is in place as it was leading to more vehicular movement.
“We have vaccines but not enough to give everyone. We have around five hundred thousand vaccines. We are thinking if it is possible to vaccinate persons between 18-44. As they have to come from their homes and may get into trouble due to the restrictions. We are thinking of postponing this for another 14 days (end of lockdown) and have discussed this with chief secretary and home minister,” Sudhakar said on Monday .
However, Basavaraj Bommai, Karnataka’s home, law and parliamentary affairs minster on Monday evening said that they will continue with the vaccination drive for people between 18-44 but only for those who have registered (and got a slot) on CoWin. “There were discussions on how to do it during the lockdown,” Bommai said. He added that there were about 200 centres that were giving vaccination to these age groups and those who crowd around these places without registration will not be allowed.
A board in Bowring Hospital read, “Vaccination for 18-44 years beneficiaries has not started yet” as people of all age groups jostled for space as small fights broke out between those waiting in queues and those trying to cut them. A significant number were asked to leave the centre as there was a shortage of vaccines.
“The portal shows that about 150 persons (18-44) registered. But that was done by East Zone but the BBMP personnel were not aware at all that these many persons had registered so they did not get the vaccine,” Dr.Manoj Kumar HV, Dean cum Director at the Bowring & Lady Curzon Medical College & Research Institute Bengaluru said.
Bengaluru, and the rest of Karnataka, have been under the tightening grip of the raging pandemic that claimed 596 more lives in the 24 hours on Sunday. Karnataka registered 39,305 new infections on Monday taking its active caseload to 571,006. Positivity rate was at 31.66% while fatality rate stood at 1.51%, according to the daily bulletin of the state health department.
Bengaluru saw a slight decrease in cases as the city reported 16,747 new infections. However, Bengaluru accounted for 374 out of the total 596 fatalities in the state.
