As the entire nation is sitting atop a volcano due to the rising coronavirus cases, incompetency in vaccine rollout is posing new headaches to people who are waiting for their second shot. Several people who received the first shot of Covaxin are waiting to receive the second shot, and until now, the authorities have not ensured the proper availability of shots.
CoWin provides incorrect information?
The much-celebrated CoWin app is being used in India to book slots for vaccination. However, fresh reports state that the app is providing wrong information regarding the availability of Covaxin in the country. Several people were compelled to return from vaccination centers after booking the slots in CoWin app for the second shot.
"I visited Victoria hospital Bengaluru after booking a slot to receive my second shot of Covaxin today (May 5). However, when I reached the hospital, I came to know that Covaxin is not available. The authorities should ensure that vaccine is available for people, and please do not provide wrong information regarding the availability of vaccines," said a person who did not get the second shot due to the non-availability of Covaxin.
Hyper-nationalism and bureaucratic incompetence will not save India
As the second wave of coronavirus is wreaking havoc in India, several international media outlets have criticized that the recent surge is an evident example of the underlying infirmities of India's healthcare infrastructure. Surprisingly, the government is loudly proclaiming success in other fields to cover up the flaws in the healthcare infrastructure that is cracking under pressure.
At the beginning of March, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had claimed that the country was in Covid-19's end game. The BJP-led government also exported 5.84 crore doses of Covid-19 vaccines, and at one point, Modi even declared that the country is the ''world's pharmacy''.
Interestingly, the government made this proclamation at a time when not even 1 percent of India's population was not vaccinated. Moreover, several people in India are dying due to oxygen shortage, and the recent addition to this list is the mishap that happened in Chamrajanagar district hospital, Karanataka where 24 people lost their lives due to a shortage of oxygen supply.
And now, with a de-railed system of vaccination where people are not getting the second dose of Covaxin, India may witness a disastrous public health outcome.
