COVID-19 vaccine drive phase II: Guide for self registration, booking of appointments

Coronavirus vaccination in India: With the second phase of vaccination having begun, about 26 crore beneficiaries would be able to either walk-in at the vaccination centre or enroll themselves to get the vaccination doses administered. This vaccination phase began on Monday, when a whopping 25 lakh beneficiaries registered themselves for the doses on the CoWIN portal, launched by the government for smooth carrying out of the immunisation drive. These beneficiaries would be receiving the doses over the next few days, while others who are eligible to receive the shot in this phase can continue registering themselves.

In this phase, people aged above 60 years, and those above 45 years and suffering from government-listed comorbidities would be eligible to receive the vaccination jabs. But how can a beneficiary register themself? Find out here!

Process for self-registration for COVID-19 vaccine

In order to register themselves for the drive, the beneficiaries would have to go to the CoWIN website launched by the government, where they would have to key in their phone number. Once they get an OTP, they would have to enter that as well to get the phone number verified. Upon this stage, the beneficiary would have to enter a few details – the photo ID card they wish to show at the centre (like Aadhaar or Voter ID), the number of the Photo ID, age and gender of the beneficiary, and information regarding any pre-existing comorbidity that the beneficiary may be suffering from.

After this, the beneficiary would need to register. After the completion of the registration, a confirmation message would be received by the user. A registered beneficiary would also have the option to register a maximum of three other beneficiaries, by filling in their photo ID proof, the ID number, name, gender as well as age. The registered beneficiary, who is filling in the application, would also be able to delete a beneficiary before they make the appointment.

Booking an appointment

The beneficiaries, after having successfully registered themselves and up to three others on the portal, can click on the ‘Schedule Appointment’ option, redirecting them to a page where they would have to choose their state, district, block, as well as the PIN code. Once these details are filled, the beneficiary would see a list of nearby vaccination centres, and the beneficiary would be able to select from the options. Upon the selection, the portal would show the number of available slots on the day, along with letting users see the slots for the next week.

Once a beneficiary chooses the slot, they would have to click on the ‘Book’ option, post which they would be headed to a page for ‘Appointment Confirmation’, where the beneficiary would have to finally confirm their appointment after verifying all the details. A message of ‘Appointment Successful’ would be displayed on the page once the booking is complete.

Alternatively, the users would also be able to walk in without having previously registered on the app for the vaccination, which will be regulated by each state. In this option, the registration, appointment, verification as well as the administration of the vaccine would happen on-site.

Second dose: The procedure

Once a beneficiary received the first dose of the vaccination, they would automatically be given a message regarding the appointment for a second dose at the same centre. In case a beneficiary has moved to a different city during this time, however, then they would be able to reschedule their appointment to a nearby centre in the new city.

Moreover, getting a second dose of the vaccine is not necessary on the 29th day, and so the beneficiary would have the option to change the appointment for the second day to anywhere between the 29th day and the 42nd day after the first dose.