They are legally allowed to book slots anywhere in Karnataka: Experts

Mysore/Mysuru: In what can be termed as ‘vaccine migration,’ many people, especially tech-savvy youths, from Bengaluru are booking vaccine slots on CoWin App in neighbouring districts of Mysuru, Mandya and Ramanagara where there are Taluk Hospitals and have slots open. 

This has, however, resulted in dearth of precious vaccine for the local residents. Armed with high-end mobile phones and laptops, Bengalureans are booking slots in the hinterland in an attempt to get the jabs as fast as possible as slots are not available in the heart of the State Capital. 

Once the slot is booked they travel to smaller cities on relatively free roads — thanks to lockdown — and when the Police stop their vehicles, they display their mobile phones that have the slot booked message from the CoWIN App. 

Bengaluru that is under the tightening grip of the raging pandemic is facing a severe shortage of vaccine supplies and there are just five inoculation centres with a maximum of 150 jabs a day. This has forced many citizens to move to rural areas in search of vaccines. And there is a provision for them to do so too as they are legally allowed to book slots anywhere in Karnataka, said experts. 

However, the local residents said that this would lead to an uneven distribution of vaccine. “The movement of people from the State Capital to Mysuru will definitely slow down the vaccination process here and will adversely impact local residents who are not familiar with the rigmarole involved in online registration for a vaccine slot,” Vidyut Shashidhar, a resident of city and Star of Mysore reader told this correspondent. 

Most of the people in Bengaluru have thorough knowledge of the online world and can easily book slots. This will surely affect the process, he added. Many youngsters are posting questions to the Police on Twitter, seeking information if it was safe to travel to other districts to get the vaccine.

In fact, there are many Twitter handles and Telegram app groups that provide regular information on availability of slots in and around Bengaluru to tech-savvy citizens and these are widely circulated in social media. There are also many portals that enable tech-savvy to track the vaccine availability. Alerts are sent directly to the mobile phones so that slots can be booked as soon as they are open. 

“The situation may not affect local residents now as there is limited supply. But it will surely affect when large stocks arrive in rural areas. In urban centres, vaccine slots can be exhausted within moments and naturally people will rush to smaller cities as now vaccination is the only way to escape from the clutches of the killer virus, said 19-year-old Surabhi Mahesh who failed to get a slot online. She is now trying her luck in booking slots at private hospital.