Free Covid-19 vaccination from tomorrow: List of dos and don'ts

India will enter a significant phase of the vaccination drive against Covid-19 from June 21 where everybody above the age of 18 will be provided free vaccination from the Centre. From tomorrow, prior registration on Co-Win will not remain mandatory which is likely to increase the number of daily vaccination. In this phase, starting from tomorrow, the government is aiming to inoculate 50 lakh people per day. As of now, the daily number is below 40 lakh.

The government has taken additional measures to make the private sector a part of this phase by keeping 25 per cent of vaccines for private hospitals to procure. But they will not be above to overcharge as the price has been capped.

Though prior registration is not required, all vaccination will be documented on Co-Win portal. Hence, beneficiaries must ensure that they are registered on the site before vaccination.

If you are going to a government hospital

> Vaccination will be free.

> Prior registration on Co-Win is not mandatory, as the government allows on-spot registration starting from tomorrow.

If you are going to a private hospital

> Prior registration on Co-Win is not needed.

> Do not pay more than ₹1,410 for Covaxin, ₹790 for Covishield and ₹1,145 for Sputnik V, as the Centre has capped the maximum price of these vaccines at private hospitals.

How to verify a vaccination certificate

As several cases of vaccine scams are being reported, it is important to check the authenticity of the vaccine certificate.

> Go to verify.cowin.gov.in which has an option for Scan QR code.

> Click on that button.

> A notification will prompt you to activate your device’s camera.

> Point the camera to the QR code on the certificate issued and scan

> After verification, it will show the name, age, gender, certificate ID, date of issuance, the name of the vaccination facility etc.

> If the certificate is not genuine, a 'certificate invalid' message will be displayed.