Can’t find a vaccine slot for yourself or your loved ones? Now you can book your slot for the COVID-19 vaccine through WhatsApp. The company issued a statement today that all those eligible to get the vaccine can now book their slots through the MyGov Corona Helpdesk available on its platform.
Users can now locate their nearest COVID-19 vaccination centre through the helpdesk available on WhatsApp and book their vaccine appointments with ease. Will Cathcart, Chief Executive Officer of WhatsApp also made the announcement of this partnership on Twitter.
He said, “Today, we are partnering with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and MyGov India to enable people to make their vaccine appointments via WhatsApp.” He also posted the link to the MyGov Corona Helpdesk on WhatsApp, along with his tweet.
WhatsApp and MyGov had also teamed up earlier this month, creating a platform through which the users could download their vaccination certificates. According to reports, over 32 lakh certificates have been downloaded so far by the users.
MyGov CEO Abhishek Singh said that the helpdesk, apart from helping people download their vaccine certificates, will also help them in finding COVID-19 vaccination appointments. He said that since people find the AI-based interface of WhatsApp easier to operate, users will be able to book their vaccination slots with ease.
A step-by-step guide to book COVID-19 vaccine slot on WhatsApp:
Step 1: Add the number of MyGov Corona Helpdesk, 9013151515, as a contact on your phone.
Step 2: Open the chat box for this contact and send ‘Book Slot’ as a message.
Step 3: Enter the OTP you receive on your mobile phone via SMS.
Step 4: Enter your preferred date, pin code, and vaccine type in the chat box.
Step 5: You will receive the confirmation of the slot booking on your phone.
WhatsApp users who have been vaccinated will also be able to download their vaccination certificates through this helpdesk. They will have to send ‘vaccine certificate’ message on the helpdesk number and will receive the certificates on their phones.