Sr Citizens' COVID Booster Dose Delayed Due To 'Erroneous' Vaccine Certificate: Orissa HC Issues Notice To Centre, State Govt

The Orissa High Court last week issued a notice to the Central Government as well as the state government on a writ petition filed by two senior citizens (husband-wife) submitting that they are eligible for COVID Vaccine Booster Dose, however, due to erroneous data in Vaccine certificate, their booster dose has been delayed. 

Essentially, the final COVID Vaccine certificate issued to the petitioners contains wrong data about the venue and date on which the second dosage was administered to them. The petitioners got the second jab of the vaccine on April 1, 2021, however, the certificate read that it was administered to them on August 19, 2021.

Now, since the booster dose can be administered 9 months after the second COVID Jab, in the case of the petitioners, the Booster Dose should be administered to them in January 2022, however, due to the mistake in the Final COVID Certificate, the booster dose is scheduled for the month of May 2022 (a delay of 4 months).

Against this backdrop, the petitioners moved the High Court submitting that they are above the age of sixty are coming within high-risk categories, for which they are eligible to get the booster dose on a priority basis as decided by the Government of India and the Government of Odisha. 

"...these petitioners are the victims of the erroneous certificates having been issued in respect of the administration of the second dose, which is taken as the basis to determine the eligibility of them to get the booster doses. Opposite party No.5 (Hospital where second COVID vaccine was administered) has shown their complacent attitude towards the wrong entries in the certificates and except expressing their helplessness, neither provided nor rendered any sort of assistance in the matter of making a provision for the petitioners to get the booster doses on the due date," the petition read.

Taking serious note of such discrepancy and stressing that the matter already involves life risk of the petitioners, the Bench of Justice Biswanath Rath issued notice to the Assistant Solicitor General of India, and Additional Standing Counsel appearing for State Government and the Aditya Aswini Hospital.

Further, the Court observed that the pendency of the Writ Petition shall not stand as a bar for the O.P.-Authority in correcting the final Certificates keeping in view the supportive of the Petitioners and issuing fresh Certificates and intimating any such development to the Court on the next date.

"This Court hopes and trusts that both the State Authority as well as Union Authority shall give urgent attention to the dispute involved herein," the Court said as it posted the matter for further hearing on February 16, 2022.

Advocate S. K. Dash appeared for the petitioners.

Case title - Narendra Kumar Das & anr. v. State of Odisha & ors

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