Mumbai: Give us more days for walk-in Covid-19 vaccine shots, say senior citizens

A senior citizen at a vaccination centre in Mahim. Pic/Ashish Raje

While the BMC had declared three days, May 18-20, as walk-in days for the first dose of vaccination for senior citizens and the disabled, many were unable to visit centres due to heavy rain brought on by cyclone Tauktae and the closure of vaccination centres set up in temporary structures. People have now demanded that walk-in days be increased in the next week.

BMC had earlier allowed walk-in for senior citizens and the disabled only for the second dose. After the Centre extended the interval between two Covishield shots, the civic body allowed the demographic to come in for the first dose.

While rain prevented people from venturing outside, many ward-level vaccination facilities have been damaged in the cyclone.

"The Covid-19 vaccination centre at Samaj Kalyan Centre in IC Colony needed urgent repairs after gusty winds damage the structure. It's closed through Tuesday and Wednesday. We requested the health department to allow us to give vaccines to senior citizens on walk-in basis for the rest of the week but they said the decision has to come from the civic commissioner-level," said Abhishek Gosalkar, ex-corporator from Dahisar.

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"My son comes under the disabled category and we were looking forward to his vaccination. Monday and Tuesday were not an option due to the cyclone. Today, too, the local vaccination centre was closed.

We cannot venture too far away from home. So if the BMC extends or allots a few more days next week, many like my son will able to take the vaccine," said Pratima Joshi, resident of Nehru Nagar, Kurla.

"We are not techno-savvy people. We would be happy to walk in rather than trying to or begging someone to register our names. Many centres are open but they don't have a sufficient quota of vaccines. If the BMC manages to provide vaccines to local centres, it will hugely benefit us," said a senior citizen from Andheri west.

18-20 May
Dates this week the BMC had allowed walk-in vaccines for senior citizens and the disabled