CoWIN App to Be Official Vaccine App for India: All You Need to Know

CoWIN will be the digitisation platform for the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, but don't download any apps from Google Play just now, as the official app has not been released. Before downloading any app for such a sensitive matter, make sure you are getting the correct app from a trusted source. The central government has introduced a new CoWIN app to roll out and scale up the mechanism for COVID-19 vaccine distribution system across the nation. The app is reported to be currently in its pre-production stage and hasn't gone live on Google Play or the App Store.

CoWIN (COVID Vaccine Intelligence Network) is supposed to be a one-stop digital platform to make the phased-out vaccination process streamlined. IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad even announced a challenge asking developers to augment, scale and strengthen the CoWIN platform.

It is still reportedly still under development, and will launch in the future. As the central government readies to administer the vaccine to frontline workers, details of the app have now emerged. These details have been listed on the MeitY (Ministry of Health and Family Welfare) site. The CoWIN app is said to have several modules – Administrator Modules for bulk registration, beneficiary registration module for self-registration and individual registration, vaccination module for verification of beneficiary details and updates of vaccination status, and beneficiary acknowledgement and status updation module for SMS alert details, issuance of electronic vaccination certificate, and a CoWIN dashboard with all the information including details such as name, age, mobile number, vaccination status, date and time of vaccination, place of vaccination, session site, health facility and name of vaccinator.

As mentioned, users cannot currently download the CoWIN app from the app stores, nor can they register on the official website. Only few users are given access to the platform, and only these users can login or access the app. Once live, all users should be able to download the app for free and register themselves for a vaccine.

Indian Express also reports that users will have to upload their photo identity to register on the app. This could be an Aadhar Card, Driving License, or even a PAN Card. The app is said to be compatible for KaiOS users as well, and should work on Jio Phones.

The government recently approved Oxford Institute's Covishield and Bharat Biotech's Covaxin vaccines for emergency use. Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has confirmed that free vaccine will be provided to frontline workers. The cost of the vaccine for the rest of the population is not known.