The long wait for the vaccine is over. Residents no longer need to queue up at hospitals from 2am as blocks and associations have started tying up with private healthcare facilities to arrange for vaccination camps at community halls.

Perhaps the first such in Salt Lake was at AJ Block on May 30. “We had tied up with Techno India Dama hospital, on EM Bypass, as it wasn’t possible for our residents to queue up for jabs from the crack of dawn,” said block president Tapan Kumar Ghosh. “Our youths did the legwork and made this camp possible in a matter of two days.”

The hospital required a minimum of 100 people to register but the Google Form floated among residents ended with double the number. Residents were called to the community hall in different time slots and after their Covishield jabs, were handed printed certificates of the same.

Registration process

Blocks like AJ and CD figured online registration would be the easiest and formed volunteer groups to help out anyone who was not Net savvy.

Blocks like BE went with in-person registrations at the community hall. “We held our registrations over the weekend, where people came over, made payments and got their doubts cleared,” said secretary, Salt Lake BE Block Nagarik Sangha, Narottam Dutta. “We began with a target of 250 people but ended with double the figure. We still had to refuse many from other blocks, Lake Town, Beleghata etc.” Their camp on Thursday provided people the first jab.

GC Block had floated online forms too but, given the panic around, realised that registered people would get the jab from elsewhere if it happened sooner than their camp. “That would put us in a spot with the hospital. So we held a two-day registration camp at the community hall over the weekend and took the payment in advance,” said executive committee member Jhumpa Ghosh.

GC Block community hall has also set up an oxygen parlour, complete with beds and cylinders, but since no patients have come in yet, the setup was rearranged to make space for the vaccination camp on Thursday.

FE Block, which held its camp on Thursday, had booked 500 jabs with Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals but exceeded the number. “We had to book an extra 100 jabs later,” an organiser said. They put out an online form on their block app and also had in-person registration, collecting Rs 1000 in advance. Those who could neither register online nor come had volunteers go over to their doorstep. Those with mobility problems were offered transportation to the inoculation site.

Registration under way at FE Block on Monday Sourced by the correspondent

Quota for free jabs

While most camps are charging around Rs 1,000 per jab, depending on the sum quoted by the hospital, Thursday’s camp at CB Block community hall provided 300 jabs free of cost. “About 750 people had registered for this camp, mainly from the local ward 39 but also from elsewhere,” said Rajesh Chirimar, local ward co-ordinator of Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation. He is also associated with the two bodies that jointly organised the camp — Siddhartha Shankar Ray Foundation and Nandlal Chirimar Memorial Trust.

“Out of these 750, we identified 300 people who are needy, from added areas like Duttabad. The government is inoculating super spreaders like hawkers so we focussed on their families and ensured they get jabs for free,” added Chirimar. BE Block had some free slots for domestic helps too.

About a dozen elderly residents of FE Block who could not pay in full had the rest of the amount subsidised by the organisers.

The residents are relieved to get the jabs. Parikshit Munsi was first in line at the AJ Block camp on Sunday. “My parents have got both their jabs but I could never book myself a slot on the Cowin app. I’m lucky to live in a block that was proactive enough to organise this camp and doubly lucky to be the first one to get it,” he said.

Health workers too approve of the decentralisation. “Since hospitals are treating Covid patients, residents are scared to come over for jabs fearing infection. So camps like these, at their doorsteps, are a great alternative,” said Satabddi Mukherjee, assistant professor of Techno India University’s School of Nursing. She was at AJ Block and this was her first vaccination drive out of the hospital.

More camps on the anvil

Since hundreds of residents are getting their first shot at the community halls around this time, the associations are contemplating repeat camps for their second dose 90 days later. And since enquiries are still coming in, blocks may take a call on holding more drives for the first dose too.

Most hospitals need a minimum of 100 people to sign up and when GC Block announced their camp, they were not sure if they could meet the target. “But then block residents, their relatives and friends from all over came up and we couldn’t refuse them. We ended up with 400 names,” says Jhumpa. “We shall decide whether another camp is needed.”

Jab Camps coming up

AA Block

When: June 5

Tie-up with: AMRI Hospitals

Which dose: Both first and second

Bookings: Have closed. They were done through phone calls and a form that had to be filled up.

Jabs for: 500 people

Open to: All. ‘We took registrations on a first come first serve basis. Everyone needs the vaccine and it wouldn’t be right to deprive someone just because they don’t live in our block,’ says AA Block secretary Partha Chakraborty.

Which vaccine: Covishiled for Rs 1,200. “Many residents are asking for Covaxin too but the hospital is unable to provide the option,” says Chakraborty.

CD Block

When: June 5, 6

Tie-up with: Millennium Health Care for May 5 and Apollo Hospitals for May 6. “We had initially tied up with another hospital but after signing up and even collecting money from residents, the hospital backed out saying they were out of vaccines,” said executive committee member Arunabha Hazra. “We scouted numerous hospitals to bail us out and finally local ward co-ordinator Tulsi Sinha Roy helped us seal the deal with Millennium on Tuesday night. The next morning Apollo came on board too.”

Which dose: Both first and second

Jabs for: Millennium Health Care will inoculate 400 people, Apollo Hospitals 300 people

Bookings: Have closed. “We collected data over Google Forms and formed a group of volunteers to help out anyone who wasn’t net savvy,” said Hazra.

Open to: Residents and friends of the block. Domestic helps and drivers were eligible too.

Which vaccine: Covishield at about Rs 1,000

CJ Block

When: June 6

Tie-up with: AMRI Hospitals

Which dose: First

Jabs for: 210 people. “There are more who want jabs but we don’t want to crowd the palce. We may hold another camp for others soon,” said secretary Raj Kumar Ghosh.

Bookings: Have closed. Payment and Cowin registrations have also been completed to speed up the process on Sunday. “We have requested Amri to send enough staff to allow three people to be vaccinated at a time,” said Ghosh.

Open to: First preference was block residents, including domestic helps, drivers etc. “But we got many people from CG, BJ, AL blocks and Karunamoyee and couldn’t refuse them. It’s not enough that those in my house are safe. Neighbours need to be safe too. We accommodated as many as possible from other blocks,” said Ghosh.

Which vaccine: Covishield at Rs 950

HA Block

When: June 11, 15

Tie-up with: Techno India Dama hospital

Which dose: Both first and second

Bookings: Will be open at HA Block community hall on June 6 and 7, 6 to 8pm. Payment and Cowin registration are to be done then.

Jabs for: 800 people

Open to: All. “Response has been overwhelming,” said executive committee member Tarasankar Chatterjee. “People are tired of waiting for hours to get their jabs. This is why we have decided to keep the service open to everyone, not just block residents.”

Which vaccine: Covishield at Rs 1,200

Egg meal for Rs 5 introduced in New Town

Urban development minister Chandrima Bhattacharya prepares to serve the first customer at Ma Canteen on Tuesday. Sudeshna Banerjee

An egg curry, a potato dish and dal served with rice is being offered for Rs 5 at the NKDA Market opposite Greenwood Park in Action Area 1 from Wednesday. Those wanting to partake of this lunch would have to collect a token from Ma Canteen between 9am and 10am. Lunch will be served there from 1pm to 3pm.

“Our country’s unemployment index has risen from eight to 14 per cent. The minister had directed us to start a canteen in our first meeting on May 11. We are giving out 100 tokens daily. The district magistrate and the food department has given us 1.5 metric tonne rice as a month’s supply,” said Hidco chairman Debashis Sen.

Twenty people were served lunch at the inauguration on Tuesday.

Sudeshna Banerjee