States »EasPosted at: Jun 9 2021 7:58PM KMC's WhatsApp chatbot for vaccination surpasses 73000 users
Kolkata, Jun 9 (UNI) Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s (KMC) WhatsApp chatbot for vaccination registration and slot booking has crossed nearly 73000 users since its launch on May 15.
With a determination to increase vaccination registration and
streamline the process of slot bookings across the city, this WhatsApp API based helpline was launched in May as a free to use service for citizens of Kolkata.
It was inaugurated and rolled out by the KMC chairperson of the Board of Administrator Firhad Hakim.
The chatbot has nearly 81,00,000 conversations generated from users across Kolkata.
The chatbot started by providing vaccine slots at 3 centres in the
city and has scaled up to 90 centres in Kolkata and across the 6
districts of Cooch Behar, Burdwan, Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Alipurduar and South 24 Parganas, since its launch.
After a successful vaccination drive for the second dose through its
WhatsApp chatbot, the slots were opened for the first dose
vaccination for people who are 45+years.
KMC’s WhatsApp chatbot has helped smoothen the vaccine appointment booking process and reduced waiting time for citizens at vaccination centres. Drive-In Vaccination was also introduced through this WhatsApp Bot to felicitate vaccination in four-wheeler only, helping many aged and ailing citizens.
Municipal Commissioner Binod Kumar said, “The response from people of Kolkata to the vaccine drives across the city has been very positive and encouraging. As we scale up the vaccine drives, we need to streamline the process to avoid crowding at vaccination centres. Our WhatsApp chatbot is a great communication tool that is reducing the tech barrier to booking a slot. We are grateful to WhatsApp for working with us to develop this solution for the benefit of our citizens.”
To book a slot through WhatsApp, citizens need to send ‘Hi’ to the
number +91 8335999000 on WhatsApp, share the date of the first dose, followed by ID details and proceed to select the vaccination centre to complete their booking. Upon verification, citizens receive a confirmation on the specific time slot that they need to visit the
centre, thereby reducing crowding at centres.
UNI PC
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