KOLKATA: With a surge of recipients in the 45+ age group — for whom it’s time for the second shot — and priority groups being given precedence in time slots across government and civic vaccination centres, queues are getting longer at private Covid vaccination centres (PCVC) yet again.
Most recipients of non-priority groups have been finding it tough to secure a slot on the Co-Win app or are being given deferred dates, forcing them to explore PCVCs.
The 18-45 group was included in the vaccination drive on April 1, which was followed by the second wave in Bengal.
Those who had got the first dose in the first week of April have turned eligible for the second shot this week.
But many seeking a civic centre or a government hospital slot have been left disappointed.
At a civic centre in Ballygunge, 100 tokens are being given to recipients other than those in the non-priority groups every day.
But queues are forming from early in the morning, making it difficult for ordinary recipients to secure a dose.
A Ballygunge Circular resident, who had received his first shot at a local civic centre on April 3, had to wait in the queue for two hours for his second shot on Saturday.
“Two days back, I had come here for the vaccine but the non-priority slots were already full,” he said.
A section of the KMC health department officials conceded that they don’t have the infrastructure to cater to all age groups.
At present, KMC is running 150 vaccination clinics across 144 wards and 50 dedicated vaccination centres.
“We have ramped up our infrastructure but that is still not enough to handle the pressure,” said a KMC official.
A KMC vaccination clinic can at best handle 200-250 recipients of different age groups.
“Beyond this number, we are helpless.
If more people queue up at our centres, we request them to return the next day,” said a KMC borough executive health officer.
The solution, according to the official, lies in increasing the number of vaccination clinics and searching for more community halls and other government-owned buildings to convert these into vaccination centres.
Private hospitals and off-shore centres run by them have seen a surge as well.
AMRI Hospitals saw the vaccination number shoot up from 1,500 till last week to 2,500 over the last three days.
“Fortunately, we have enough in stock to cater to the rising demand.
We had expected a larger crowd since slots are not easily available at government centres,” said AMRI CEO Rupak Barua.
Peerless Hospital, too, has seen a surge since June 24.
“A large number of our recipients are, in fact, getting their first dose.
This should rise since government centres have included priority groups,” said Peerless CEO Sudipta Mitra.