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With the rollout of several coronavirus vaccines all over the world, India’s drug regulator, Central Drugs Standard Control Organisations (CDSCO), too, has approved two vaccines — Covishield and Covaxin. 

Both Covishield (AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute of India) and Covaxin (manufactured by Bharat Biotech Limited) have been approved for emergency restricted use in India. 

When can I get the vaccine? 

Taking the availability of vaccines into consideration, the Indian government has divided the vaccine distribution into various categories, with some of the first doses going to selected priority groups who are at higher risk of contracting the deadly virus. 

In the first phase of the vaccination drive, all healthcare workers, along with other frontline and municipal workers, including the state and central police department, armed forces, home guard, disaster management, civil defence organisations, and prison staff, were administered the vaccine, as per the recommendation by the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC).  

In the next phase, people who are over 60 years of age and between 45 and 59 years of age with comorbid conditions are receiving the COVID-19 vaccines. At present, the vaccines are also administered to everyone over 45 years of age, despite any comorbid conditions. 

Next in line will be based on identified geographical areas where COVID-19 infection risk is high (as decided by NEGVAC). 

The rest of the population will be inoculated once the above list is secured. 

How to register for vaccination? 

To avoid overcrowding at COVID Vaccination Centres (CVCs), a self-registration module has been made available online at https://www.cowin.gov.in/home.

One can register through a One-Time Password (OTP) verification sent on the respective person’s phone number, or directly on the Aarogya Setu app. 

To register, one has to provide their basic information along with a photo identification card. 

From a single phone number, four people can register. However, each person will need their own photo identification document to avail of the vaccine. 

A provisional certificate is provided after the first dose. On completion of the second dose, the participant receives a message for completion of the schedule. 

This message includes a link to download the final digital certificate of vaccination for perusal, which can be saved in a Digi-locker.