Vadodara: Covid shots not taken, confirmation texts fired

VADODARA: The familiar story of persons who have not taken a Covid-19 vaccine dose getting messages that they had done so continues a year after the issue had first surfaced. Last year, several persons got such messages for the second dose of Covid-19 even when they had not taken it and this year people are getting similar messages for the precautionary dose.
An interesting case is that of Manjalpur resident Ravi Barot who got the message of having taken the second dose in September last year even when he had not done so. This year he got the message for the preventive (booster) dose as well. “I know of several others who have received messages for the preventive dose even when they have not taken the vaccine,” he said.
A similar message was sent about Kadambari Patel, a senior citizen residing in the Harninagar area of the city, even when she had not taken the preventive dose. Last year, it was her granddaughter Diya Patel who had received a message confirming that she had taken the second dose.
Congress member Sai Dhekane and his cousin sister both received messages showing that they had taken the preventive dose even when they had not done so. “I do not believe that this is an error. These are not isolated cases,” he said. Officials claimed that such incidents may be isolated ones and could be a result of errors in entering the details of beneficiaries. “This is the only possibility. The system has been made much better now,” said Vadodara Municipal Corporation’s medical officer (health) Dr Devesh Patel. Patel said that it was due to such possibilities that the option of revoking a dose had been given to beneficiaries in the Cowin portal or application. “They can exercise this option once and take the vaccine,” he said.
The penetration of preventive doses has been low in the city. While senior citizens have taken the dose, only 45% of the target had been achieved in the 18 to 44 years age group and 35% coverage was achieved in the 45 to 60 years age group till Tuesday.