Comments
The Ministry of Health and MyGov announced that the MyGov Corona Helpdesk on WhatsApp now allows users to locate their nearest vaccination centre and book their vaccine-appointment.
WhatsApp users across the country will now be able to use the chatbot by simply sending ‘Book Slot’ to the WhatsApp number +91 9013151515, MyGov said in a statement on Tuesday.
On August 5, MyGov and WhatsApp also introduced the ability for users to download vaccine certificates from the chatbot and so far, over 32 lakh certificates have been downloaded by users across the country.
“Since its launch, MyGov Corona Helpdesk, enabled with support from Haptik and Turn.io, has evolved into a go-to platform that is not only helping citizens with authentic Covid-related information but is now also aiding them in the process of vaccine booking as also finding vaccination centres and slots and downloading vaccination certificates. It is enabling digital inclusion in the true sense as most people find the AI-based interface enabled on WhatsApp easier to navigate,” Abhishek Singh, Chief Executive Officer, MyGov said.
The Helpdesk since its launch in March 2020, has emerged as one of most authentic sources of Covid-related information during the pandemic and served as a critical instrument in fighting the public-health crisis for over 41 million users across India, he said.
“Judging by the large numbers of people who have placed their trust in the MyGov Corona Helpdesk chatbot and availed themselves of the benefits, this is an important step in our journey to become a digitally empowered country. As a platform, we are fully committed to supporting our government’s efforts to help fight this pandemic,” Shivnath Thukral, Director - Public Policy, WhatsApp, said.
To contact MyGov Corona Helpdesk chatbot, citizens can save the WhatsApp number +91 9013151515 on their phones; start a chat by typing “Book Slot” and send it to the number. This will generate a six-digit one-time password on the respective mobile phone number.
Users then choose a preferred date and location, based on the pincode and vaccine type. All users can follow this sequence to get a confirmation of their centre and day of their vaccine appointment.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.