No vaccine stock, Bengalureans rush to nearby districts for shot

No vaccine stock, Bengalureans rush to nearby districts for shot

Christin.MathewPhilip@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:11.05.2021 

With the city facing a severe shortage of vaccine supplies, more and more Bengalureans, primarily in the 18-44 age group, are now heading to nearby districts for inoculation.

The skewed digital divide works in favour of them since most have better access to high-speed internet and smartphones, own vehicles and thus are increasingly travelling to neighbouring districts like Bengaluru Rural, Chikkaballapur, Kolar, Ramanagara, Tumakuru, Mandya and Mysuru to get the shots.

This sudden influx could slow down vaccination in these regions and adversely impact locals, who may not be familiar with the rigmarole involved in online registration for a vaccine slot.

Twitter handles like Bangalore Vaccine Update @Blore-Vaccine as well as several Telegram groups provide regular information on availability of slots in and around Bengaluru to tech-savvy citizens. There are also several ‘vaccine availability tracker’ portals, which provide information about centres where vaccines are available. Police are allowing those with confirmation SMS for scheduled vaccination to travel outside the city.

Sudhir Srinivasan, who received his first shot at Chintamani in Chikkaballapur, wrote on Twitter, “Reached at 9.10am. Got tokens around 9.40am. Vaccines arrived at 10.30am. They prioritized the second dose so it took a bit longer. But was out at 11.15am. Around half the recipients were from Bengaluru. Line moves fast (sic).”

Nikhil Rajendran, who booked slots at Chintamani for him and his wife, said: “Vaccination process was smooth. When it came to travelling, I was stopped thrice by police on Bengaluru-Chintamani route, but when I showed the appointment slip, they were fine and there were no issues.”

Abhishek Humney, who travelled from Mahadevapura to Government Boys’ School, Hoskote, said: “The centre was well-managed and there was no crowding. They will ask for your ID proof and appointment confirmation message.”

Girish Valecha, a netizen, asked on Twitter: “I got my vaccination slot in Bangalore Rural (562114) for 14th May. Am I allowed to travel for vaccination from 560008 with appointment slip and SMS confirmation?.” In response, the health department wrote back: “Yes.”

Though there is nothing illegal in getting vaccines from rural areas, health experts fear it could affect the rate of vaccination in those areas. “Bengaluru Rural vaccines are for people living there. Let’s not snatch it away,” tweeted Forever Bengaluru @ForeverBLRU.

Mallikarjuna NH, a netizen, wrote: “I might be overreacting, but these people who are booking rural slots of vaccines from Bengaluru are just shameless.”

Doses administered

According to Co-Win portal, as on Monday, the total vaccine doses administrated in BBMP was 19.86 lakh, followed by Bengaluru Urban (3.02 lakh), Mysuru (7.9 lakh), Bengaluru Rural (1.82 lakh), Kolar (2.36 lakh), Tumakuru

(4.29 lakh), Mandya

(3.26lakh), Chikkaballapur

(2.59lakh) and Ramanagara

(2.29 lakh).