A REPORTER
SHILLONG: The Hynñiewtrep Integrated Territorial Organization (HITO) has stated that vaccination is the only way for the people of Meghalaya to be safe from Covid-19, but the implementation mechanism in the state has been far from ideal.
In this connection the organisation has also forwarded a memorandum to the Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma.
"We have heard from many young people who tried to register themselves for the covidshield vaccine of the impossibility for them to secure a limited slot," DonbokDkhar President of HITO said.
He said that the organisation believes that a different mechanism needs to be adopted to ensure that a fair and equitable system is employed to ensure that each and every citizen of the state is vaccinated in a timely manner.
"The requirement for online registration is deeply unfair to the masses of people, who may not have access to smartphones or be well-versed in filling out the form or even be knowledgeable enough in the English language. The current system is geared unfairly towards the privileged urban elite and is disadvantageous to the bulk of the population," he said.
He added, "Why should we in Meghalaya not use our indigenous system of local governance? The RangbahShnong, WahehChnong and those in Garo Hills should be mandated to take an age-wise stock of residents who require vaccination."
Dkhar said the local bodies have already provided much yeoman service in the fight against Covid-19, right from the beginning of the battle. Empower them to keep a list of all those who have registered online and those who have not, or could not, do so.
Further he said that the government will then be able to offer offline registration for vaccination.
"We request the government to urgently consider this as there is simply no more time to waste," he said.
On the matter of vaccine supply, the HITO leader pointed out that Chief Minister Conrad Sangma needs to act more assertively in securing vaccine doses for the people of Meghalaya as the Central Government has shifted this responsibility onto the states.
He also questioned on how many vaccines have been ordered by the state besides those from the Serum Institute of India, which produces Covishield?, What steps is the government taking to utilise, fully and effectively, the available vaccines and avoid wastage?, Can the state government account for the usage of all the ventilators in the state, those that were provided by the Centre and those that were not?.
"In this battle it is better to be over-prepared than to be sorry. The government must focus all its energies on saving lives instead of waiting for the Central Government to act and we are willing to do all we can to help at the local level in this matter," he said.