75 lakh vaccine registrations today, no glitch, says Co-Win chief RS Sharma

The Co-Win website started Covis-19 vaccine registration for everyone between the age of 18 and 44 years. After an initial hiccup of OTP delay and server crash, Cowin.gov.in started taking registration and 3.5 million people were registered in one hour, though several users found no hospitals offering vaccines to people below the age of 45 years. National Health Authority CEO RS Sharma clarified why this is happening and when people will be able to book appointments.

Slots depending on states

Sharma said the availability of slots depends on states and private hospitals. When states and private hospitals come on board with the details of their centres, vaccine prices etc., people will be able to book appointments. Some states and hospitals may come on board on May 1 and later, he said to news agency ANI.

In fact, after the registration process was open on Wednesday, Pune-based Serum Institute of India announced a reduction in the Covishield price from ₹400 to ₹300 per dose. So states are in the process of ordering vaccine doses from the makers. Once they are ready, slots will be shown on Cowin.gov.in.

Difference between registration and appointment booking

Several users were allowed to register themselves on Co-WIN on Wednesday through OTP received on their mobile numbers. For registration, one has to mention the type of photo ID card (for example Aadhaar), the number mentioned on the card, name, gender, year of birth. With this information, the registration will be done.

So the next time you log on to cowin.gov.in after registration, you will have to again give your phone number and an OTP will be received, but you will be taken straight to the page of booking appointment.

"We will continue to announce as and when States come on board. We will provide information in public. The advice to people is that you log in and get an appointment only when you see vacancies available," Sharma said.

Can Cowin take the load?

Before the website crashed for a few minutes on Wednesday at 4pm, Sharma told ANI that Cowin has registered about five million people in a day. The platform is prepared for a double number, he said. On Wednesday, 3.5 million people were registered in one hour. "We delivered 8.7 million SMSes in 1.5 hours," Sharma said.

Why Central government hospitals are not mentioned on Cowin

In the third phase of vaccination scheduled to begin on May 1, Central government hospitals will provide free vaccination for people between the age of 18 and 44 years. There will be no online booking of slots in these hospitals.