The registration of those in the age group of 15 to 18 years will begin on the CoWin portal from January 1, 2022, the chief of the platform, Dr RS Sharma said, adding that a student ID card will also work as identification for getting the vaccine administered to them. Stating that vaccination will begin from January 3, the official also said that there will be no change in the process of registration and administration, as compared to adults. Here’s all you need to know.
Registration will work in the same way as that for adults. Those eligible have to register on the CoWin app in advance and book an appointment at a vaccination centre close to them. Students will also be able to use their student ID as proof for verification before vaccination.
“We have kept the process very simple. Children born in the year 2007 or before will be eligible for vaccination and they can register on or after January 1. Vaccination will start from January 3. There are nine documents valid for identification and we have added another document for children, which is their school identity card,” RS Sharma said in an interview to CNN-News18.
The nine documents that are acceptable are Aadhaar Card, Driving License, Health Insurance Smart Card (issued by Ministry of Labour), Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) Job Card, PAN Card, Passbooks issued by Bank/Post Office, Passport, Pension Document, Voter ID. People with comorbidities will have to carry a certificate issued by a registered medical practitioner and further details can be found here.
Bharat Biotech's Covaxin is likely to be the only COVID-19 vaccine available, for now, for those in the age group of 15-18 years, who will be inoculated from January 3, official sources told PTI. Zydus Cadila's vaccine ZyCoV-D has not yet been introduced in the country's inoculation programme, even for adults, though it had received emergency use authorisation from the drug regulator on August 20, making it the first vaccine that could be administered in the age group of 12-18 years in the country. The indigenously developed ZyCoV-D is the world's first DNA-based needle-free COVID-19 vaccine.
“Zydus vaccine has three doses and Covaxin has two. They (People) will have the choice but they will have to see which vaccine a particular vaccination centre is offering. Choice will be there, but it will also depend on the availability at particular vaccination centres,” Sharma said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a televised address to the nation on Saturday, December 25, announced that vaccination against COVID-19 for those between 15-18 years will start from January 3, while "precaution dose" for healthcare and frontline workers would be administered from January 10. The decisions came amid rising COVID-19 cases linked to the Omicron variant of the virus. The precaution dose will also be available for citizens above 60 years of age and with comorbidities on the advice of their doctor from January 10 next year as well, the Prime Minister said.
With PTI inputs