Vaccine registration

The government of India has mandated that citizens aged over 18 years should register either in the COWIN portal or the Arogya setu app to seek an appointment at the nearest hospital for the Covid vaccine programme. The registration is otherwise a simple process requiring a person to register with mobile phone-based OTP. The user is then directed to select appointment dates and search for the hospitals based on regions or pin code.

Further, there is now an urgent need to publish the list of both private and government hospitals administering the vaccine in leading national and vernacular newspapers. The government should also take proactive steps to publish the list of hospitals through various digital and social media platforms, so as to reach all the targeted audiences. The information will help needy citizens access to the nearest hospital for immunization in a hassle-free manner.

 

Varun Dambal

Bengaluru

Mental health issues

During the second Covid wave, the most important aspect that needs to be addressed is Covid Stigma. Issues regarding Mental Health are rising every day. Ambiguity and uncertainty about coronavirus and isolation are creating extremely stressful situations. While preventive and medical action is the most important aspect of fighting the pandemic, emergency psychological crisis interventions for people affected by Covid-19 cannot be ignored.

People who have recovered from Coronavirus should come forward and spread the positivity. No doubt second wave is severe in India, but fatality rate is 1.2 per cent. Not every person who tests positive requires a hospital bed and oxygen. It’s mostly for patients who are already suffering with co-morbidities and in some cases for people who triggers and start Covid treatment very late. Be aware, but don’t panic.

Ravi Teja Kathuripalli

Hyderabad,

The horrific and heart-wrenching stories of Covid-19 affected struggling to get access to life saving medicines and medical oxygen and a tormenting increase in daily case load over the weeks from the surging second wave has created desperate situation. With gloomy news all around, many now runs the risk of developing anxiety disorders, especially the older people with limited social interactions. Under these pressure circumstances, media must be judicious in their reporting without compromising on disseminating credible and verified information. Like how media had evolved a code for reporting with an intent to protect the identity of the AIDS affected in 1980's when the scourge of AIDS begun to rampage the world, media now needs to embrace a code to ensure the reporting don't trigger panic. While fighting the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, mental health of our people cannot be allowed to take a back seat.

M Jeyaram

Sholavandan (TN)

US help

This refers to the news report, ‘US immediately sending help that India needs: President Biden’, (April 28). After the initial inertia, the US has now swung into full action to support India in its fight against Covid second wave. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with leaders of US business community and the US-India Business Council to mobilise support for India.

Around 40 top American companies have come together to create a first-of-its-kind global task force for India to provide medical supplies, vaccine, oxygen and other life-saving assistance. Meanwhile, raw materials are being shipped from America to the Serum Institute to ramp up vaccine production.

All this indicates the strength and durability of the US-India relationship as strategic partners. New Delhi should leverage all the help it can get from the US, hold it to its commitments, preserve the friendship, and use it to alleviate the distress. Meanwhile, if the US focusses on fighting Covid within its borders alone while the disease rages unchecked in India and other parts of the developing world, sooner or later disease variants will make their way back to the US and the Western world.

N Sadhasiva Reddy

Bengaluru

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