Thanks to WhatsApp and the Ministry of Health, booking a slot for COVID-19 vaccination has become a whole lot easier. Today, both parties announced that the MyGov Corona HelpDesk on WhatsApp now allows users to locate their nearest vaccination center and book their vaccine appointment.
Will Cathcart, Chief Executive Officer, Whatsapp on Twitter, announced that today we are collaborating with the Ministry of Health and @mygovindia to enable people to make their vaccine appointments via WhatsApp.
Now book vaccination slot by simply sending ‘Book Slot’ to @MyGovIndia Corona
Helpdesk on @WhatsApp, verify OTP & follow the steps https://t.co/ROZbIsA1ou
Grateful to WhatsApp & @haptik for their continued support to build this chatbot @PMOIndia @mansukhmandviya @AshwiniVaishnaw— abhishek singh (@abhish18) August 23, 2021
The MyGov Corona Helpdesk on WhatsApp, since its launch in March 2020, has proved to be a valuable resource for COVID-related information and has been a critical tool in dealing with the public-health crisis for over 41 million users in India.
Earlier this month, on 5th August 2021, MyGov and WhatsApp also introduced the ability for users to download vaccine certificates from the chatbot. So far, users across the country have downloaded over 32 lakh certificates.
“Since its launch, MyGov Corona Helpdesk, enabled with support from Haptik and Turn.io, has evolved into a go-to platform that is not only helping citizens with authentic Corona-related information but is now also aiding them in the process of vaccine booking as also finding vaccination centers and slots and downloading vaccination certificates,” commented Abhishek Singh, CEO MyGov; President & CEO NeGD; MD & CEO Digital India Corporation (DIC) at Govt of India.
“We are thankful to WhatsApp for their continued support in helping us unlock the true potential of this chatbot for citizen help and engagement throughout the trying times of the pandemic,” he added.