Covishield Vaccine Registration, Efficacy Rate, Side Effects, Dose Gap and all the information you need to know is available here.
If you’re a resident of India, surely you must have heard the name ‘Covishield’ several times over the last few months. Actually, Covishield is the name of the Covid-19 vaccination developed by the Oxford-AstraZeneca and made locally by the Serum Institute of India.
As a matter of fact, Covishield is the only anti- Covid-19 vaccine that’s currently available in India because other variants such as Covaxin and Sputnik-5 are yet to be available.
Unfortunately, a lot of people are reluctant to take the Covishield jab despite it’s high efficacy rate. Therefore, in this article, I will discuss the efficacy rates, side effects and dose gap of Covishield vaccination. And of course, I will guide you on how to register for the Covishield vaccine.
I will start with the efficacy rates. This could help you to decide on whether or not you would like to take the Covishield jab.
Efficacy Rates of Covishield
First and foremost, news reports clearly indicate that Covishield has an efficacy rate of as high as 90 percent at least. It is also billed as one of the safest and most efficient vaccines to take, after over 1.5 million frontline health workers and personnel of the Indian Armed Forces received the jab and underwent tests.
The trial of Covishield vaccine is said to be the largest human trial ever in the world and hence, India has won accolades internationally for the same. According to other scientific data, the efficacy rate for Covishield ranges between 70 percent and 90 percent, depending upon various factors such as age and immunity levels.
This means that Covishield vaccine can actually protect you against the Covid-19 infection and disease. It is also known to be highly effective against a lot of variants of the Covid-19 virus, including the Delta variant.
Covishield Vaccine Side effects
There’s also a lot of talk about the Covishield vaccine’s side effects. According to doctors, side effects are common for every vaccine and depends upon the immunity levels of a person. Unfortunately, they point out, the anti-vaccine lobby has been harping on the side effects of the vaccine.
Common side effects of covishield vaccine as reported by some patients include:
- Rashes at the site of vaccination.
- Soreness or redness at the site of vaccination.
- Mild fever.
- Nausea and headache
- Mild body aches.
Usually, these side effects last for only a day or 48 hours.
These side effects aren’t really experienced by all persons that take the Covishield jab. This doesn’t mean that the vaccine isn’t working. Regardless of whether or not you experience side effects, the vaccine, once taken, continues to protect you partially with the first jab and up to 90 percent with the second dose, against the Covid-19 infection.
Covishield Vaccine 2nd Dose After How Many Days
This brings us to the next question: What is the gap between the two doses of Covishield. According to the Indian government and various other sources, the gap ranges between 70 days and 90 days. That is because it takes time for your body to assimilate the Covid-19 antigens and form an effective serum after the first jab.
However, there’re cases where Non-Resident Indians and seafarers have taken the two jabs within a month, due to the need to travel. Regardless, you can consult your family doctor on how many days gap you should give between the two Covid-19 vaccines.
Covishield Vaccine Registration India Online Booking
Registration for the Covishield vaccine is very simple. The Indian government offers three channels for you to register for the vaccine.
One is the special portal which you can access at www.cowin.gov.in. You can also register for the vaccine through the Arogya Setu app as well as the UMANG app. I will be discussing these steps in the following paras.
Step- 1: Registration of Covishield vaccine registration on Cowin.gov.in
The first step for getting the Covid-19 jabs is to register yourself on the cowin.gov.in portal. Follow these simple steps:
- Access the cowin.gov.in portal from the browser on your computer or mobile phone.
- Alternatively, you can also register for the Covid-19 vaccine if you have the Arogya Setu app released by the government of India.
- You will require a valid phone number to register for vaccines on either Arogya Setu app or www.cowin.gov.in
- Once you submit your mobile number, you will receive a six-digit One Time Password (OTP) on that number.
- Key in the OTP in the section.
Step-2: Registering Yourself
- The next step is registering yourself on cowin.gov.in or Arogya Setu app.
- Here’s something important: even if you’re registering for the Covid-19 vaccine through Arogya Setu, you will still be redirected to cowin.gov.in portal.
- In the second step, you have to mention which photo identity proof you’re going to use. The www.cowin.gov.in portal accepts five different documents as identity proof.
- You can either use the number of your Aadhar card, PAN card, Passport, Driving License or Pensioner’s Card as photo ID proof.
- If you’re planning on traveling abroad shortly or have a passport, I would suggest that you mention your passport number. That would make it easier to get the certificate accepted by the country where you’re traveling.
- Fill in your name exactly as it appears in the photo ID proof.
- Select your gender.
- Select your year of birth.
Here it’s important to fill out all details such as your photo ID card number, year of birth and especially the proper spelling of your name. That’s because details you submit once cannot be changed, corrected or altered easily and you’ll have to undergo a long process to get these rectifications done.
Step-3: Fixing Your Appointment
This is the next and perhaps the most important step to register for the Covid-19 vaccination from the Indian government. And that’s fixing your appointment.
- Once you register as I mention in Step-1 and Step-2, the next and final step is to register yourself and members of your family, friends or neighbors, domestic helpers or relatives.
- You can register up to four persons using a single mobile number.
- To fix an appointment, select the date on the Cowin portal.
- And key in your Postal Index Number (PIN) code to find the nearest vaccination center.
- There’re two age groups under which you can avail the Covid-19 vaccines. One is the 18 years to 44 years group and second is the 45 years and above.
- If you’re a millennial, select the 18 to 44 years age group.
- You will also see the option of availing free Covid-19 vaccines from the Indian government as well as paid vaccines from private hospitals.
- There’re three daily time slots for taking the Covid-19 jab.
- The timings are 9am to 1pm, 2pm to 6pm and 7pm to 11pm.
- Depending on whether you’re going for the free shot or the paid one, the Cowin portal will display the location where time slots are available and the location where you have to go for the vaccine.
Step-4: Name of Vaccine
This can be a very confusing step for most people. The Cowin portal display three distinct vaccines that’re available. They’re Covishield, Covaxin and Sputnik-5.
- Indicate whether you’re taking the first dose of the vaccine as would be the case or the second one.
- Currently in India, only Covishield made by the Pune-based Serum Institute of India is available. Covaxin and Sputnik-5 are yet to be available at the time of writing this article.
- While the Covidshield vaccine is free at government run vaccination centers, the same jab costs Rs.780 at private hospitals.
- It is solely your choice whether to go for a free jab or a paid one.
- Once you select the name of the vaccine, free or paid and the center, you have to book the appointment.
- When your appointment is successfully booked, you will receive an SMS message on your smartphone, where each person taking the vaccine is given a specific secret OTP.
- This OTP has to be submitted along with the photo ID proof that was used for registering for the vaccines, at the vaccination center.
Step-5: Getting Vaccinated Against Covid-19
At the time and date of the appointment, you have to report to the venue.
Officials there will verify your appointment with your name and photo ID proof. You will also have to submit your secret OTP to this official and proceed for the jab.
- Once you take the Covid-19 shot, you will get a congratulatory message by SMS from the Indian government.
- In about 10 minutes from receiving this SMS message, you can visit the Cowin portal and login using your phone number and OTP and download the certificate of vaccination.
- The certificate will show you the date and time of taking the vaccine and indicate it was the first dose.
- You can also check on this portal when you can take the second dose. Usually, it is after a span of 84 days and 96 days.
- You can fix the appointment for the second dose one or two days before the due date by following the above procedures.
- Upon taking the second dose, you will receive a fully vaccinated certificate from the government of India. This certificate is useful for air, road and rail travel where some states still have quarantine and other requirements in place.
Step-6: Missing an Appointment
Just in case you miss the appointment for your first or second vaccine, there’s nothing to worry about.
- Simply login on www.cowin.gov.in with your phone number and OTP.
- Follow the procedures as you would for the dose, as I explain above.
- Take the secret OTP with you for the appointment and get the vaccine.
As a matter of fact, the Indian government has made it very easy for everyone to use the portal cowin.gov.in. It is also available in multiple Indian languages for ease of use.
Walk In Vaccination Centers
With India having made a world record of administering over one billion doses of the vaccine to a population of about 1.35 billion, several municipal corporations, state government and Union Territory administrations as well as the Central government are opening walk-in vaccination centers across the country.
You don’t need to fix a prior appointment for the Covid-19 vaccine from www.cowin.gov.in or Arogya Setu app to get a Covid-19 jab at these walk-in centers. All you require is your mobile phone and your photo ID proof.
Officials at walk-in centers will register you on the Cowin portal according to your age and administer the vaccine on the spot.
Also Read: Cowin Covid Vaccine Registration Near Me for 18 Years Old
UMANG App
In November 2021, the Indian government has also extended the facility of registering on the Cowin.gov.in portal through the Unified Mobile Application for National Governance (UMANG). You can also book an appointment through this app. UMANG has a link from where you can access the www.cowin.gov.in portal and fix the appointment.
According to various news articles, the Indian government also plans to make certificates for fully vaccinated persons in India available through the Digilocker app. This would enable Indians to show the certificate to any authority while traveling or for other purposes. Since Digilocker comes from the Indian government and is linked with your Aadhar number, your documents seen on the app are considered as legit proof.
Vaccinations at Different Locations
It doesn’t matter whether you book the appointment for the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine at one location in India and second at another place. Both will be considered as valid and you can get the fully vaccinated certificate from the Indian government.
Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), sailors and airline crew that require to travel immediately and frequently needn’t wait for 84 days to pass between the first dose and the second dose of the vaccines.
| Covishield Vaccine Certificate | Download Certifcate |
| Efficacy Rates of Covishield | Upto 90 percent |
| Covishield Vaccine Registration India Online Booking | www.cowin.gov.in/ |
| Covishield Vaccinations at Different Locations | Covishield vaccine Near Me |
In Conclusion
The Covishield vaccine is very safe and has a very high efficacy rate. As a matter of fact, Serum Institute of India is supplying the Covishield vaccine to several countries around the world, either free of cost or under the international cooperation to combat the Covid-19 pandemic. No country has reported any adverse effects of Covishield and continue to use the vaccine to protect their citizens against the deadly virus.
| Cowin Website | Click here |
| MTCBUS Homepage | Click here |