Tumakuru resident uses Udupi man’s number for shot

BENGALURU: A 35-year-old man hailing from Udupi and working in Bengaluru was taken aback when he learnt that a man from Tumakuru had received a dose of the Covid-19 vaccine using his mobile number. Mobile phone number is used to validate the registration process.
Satheesh Amin had received his first shot on May 24 at a camp organised by the private company he works for in Bengaluru.No one else from his family had registered with his phone number.
“On Wednesday, I received a feedback call asking me to rate the vaccination experience. I was too shocked and surprised and immediately disconnected the call,” Amin said. “I quickly logged into the Arogya Setu app to find out what happened and learnt that a person from Tumakuru had taken the vaccine on June 14 using my mobile number. The vaccination certificate of this person was uploaded on the dashboard of my page.”
Amin said an SMS was also sent but he didn’t notice it. He said one Dileep TR, 45, took a dose of Covishield at the Bhramasandra primary health centre in Tumakuru.
“I’m surprised because the mobile number is used to validate registrations for the vaccine on the website or app,” Amin said. “I have been trying to reach out to the helpline to rectify this mistake and have even sent a mail for which a response is awaited.”
Dr Mohammed Tufail, medical officer and CoWin app supervisor in Dakshina Kannada admitted there have been several similar incidents in the district.
“The vaccine beneficiary in Tumakuru may have registered on-site, which demands visual verification,” Dr Tufail said. “This is done by taking a picture of the beneficiary and his/her Aadhaar card. The man may have deliberately given the wrong mobile number or staff may have made a mistake and entered the wrong number. The problem is for the Tumakuru person because he does not have his vaccine certificate and a new profile will have to be created when he goes for the second dose.”
Currently, the app allows the beneficiary to rectify name, age, date of birth, gender and error in the number mentioned on the ID card submitted.
“We expect an update soon that will allow the district administration to make corrections based on a complaint from a user,” Dr Tufail said. “We have seen cases where incorrect details were filed when taking the first dose and we were forced to create a new profile when the person returned for the second dose. So, it is important for people to check their vaccine certificate the day they are vaccinated.”
A similar incident was reported in Ernakulam recently.