The Centre on Monday flagged to the Delhi government instances of some private vaccination centres registering people under the age of 45 for the coronavirus shots.
In a letter to the principal secretary (health) of the Delhi government, the Centre directed to issue a show-cause notice to Vidyasagar Institute of Mental Health, Neuro & Allied Sciences, or VIMHANS, located in the north east district for such practices.
“VIMHANS has been found to register beneficiaries below the age of 45 years as healthcare workers and frontline workers, and vaccinate them,” the health ministry said in the letter.
The Centre directed the Delhi administration to impose a fine on VIMHANS and consider depanelment of the hospital if the explanation given by them is found to be unsatisfactory. VIMHANS will be given 48 hours to file its reply on the matter, the health ministry said.
In the third phase of the vaccination drive in India, all citizens above the age of 45 were made eligible to get the shot. Healthcare workers and frontline workers received the vaccine in the first phase, while senior citizen and those with comorbidities were inoculated in the second phase.
The Centre noted the irregularities in vaccines administered by VIMHANS in the hospital’s CoWIN data. CoWIN is the portal where beneficiaries can register themselves for the vaccines and their data is stored.
“The CoWIN sample data (March 19-April 3) of vaccinated beneficiaries from this private CVC [covid vaccination centre] verified by the health ministry revealed that many beneficiaries lie outside the ambit of eligible beneficiaries,” the health ministry’s letter to Delhi government stated.
The letter noted that vaccines were a “precious commodity” and that lapses in compliance guidelines may harm the countrywide inoculation exercise.
In another case, the Delhi government, on the Centre’s advice, has issued a show cause notice to Bensups Hospital in Sector-12 of Dwarka in the national Capital for a similar violation, the health ministry release also stated.
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