The Bengal government on Tuesday requested the Centre to allow it to provide Covid vaccines to private hospitals for about four lakh people who have taken their first dose at private units across the state and are awaiting the second.

The Centre till Tuesday night neither rejected nor approved the request.

The state government has drawn up an alternative plan so that the recipients could get the second jab at a government facility nearest to the private unit where they were administered the first dose. If the plan is adopted, the recipients will be given time slots for their second dose at government units.

“We have requested the Centre to allow us to provide vaccines to the private hospitals for the second dose as that will make it convenient for those who have taken their first dose at those healthcare units. We are awaiting a response,” an official of the health government said on Tuesday.

“As an alternative, to ensure these people, about four lakh recipients, get the second dose on time, the state government has tagged private hospitals with government healthcare facilities.”

The private hospitals in Calcutta, Salt lake and New Town that were administering shots till April 30 are being tagged to government hospitals, health centres run by civic bodies as well as other vaccination sites of the government.

The state has issued a list of government vaccination sites to which the private hospitals have been tagged.

“To get vaccinated at the government facilities, one has to carry a photo identification document like voter card, Aadhaar card or passport along with proof of having received the first dose, for example the text message received after the first jab,” the official said.

“The state government is working to evolve a more precise and convenient information dissemination system for the benefit of all intending to take Covid vaccines.”

A state government official said to avoid long queues for these recipients, exclusive time slots are being planned. “No other recipient will be allowed to avoid rush and long queues during those windows,” the official said.

In Calcutta, the hospitals have been mostly tagged to health centres of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation and a few government hospitals. In Salt Lake, the private hospitals have been tagged to government hospitals, including Salt Lake Sub-Divisional Hospital.

In New Town, the healthcare units are tagged mostly to the New Town Kolkata Development Authority’s vaccination centre.

Apart from these, if someone wishes, he or she can visit any government vaccination centre for the second dose.

Metro reported on Tuesday that private hospitals had requested the state government to provide them with doses so they could administer the second jab to those who had taken the first at their facilities.

Although the state had earlier asked the private hospitals to redirect the recipients to government facilities, most people said they would prefer to wait for the private units to get their supply.

Till April end, the state government would allot doses from the supply it would get from the Centre to private hospitals.

But the Centre’s new vaccination policy from May 1 states that the private hospitals have to procure doses directly from the manufacturers — Bharat Biotech for Covaxin and the Serum Institute of India for Covishield.

However, in Calcutta, barring a few, most hospitals have not been able to procure the doses.

Private hospitals said the system introduced by the state government to tag them to government facilities might be inconvenient to people.

“Our staff will not be there to assist the recipients of the second dose. There could be confusion. We are in talks with the state government to allow private hospitals to administer the second dose at government facilities such as stadiums and community centres,” said Rupak Barua, the president of Association of Hospitals of Eastern India.