Mumbai: Vaccination certificate verification is just a pen-and-paper show at distant suburbs

A helpdesk at Palghar station. Commuters say local body officials at places like Kasara and Palghar are simply noting down details before stamping documents brought by people

In what could prove to be risky and might defeat the purpose of a double vaccination certificate, employees of smaller municipal bodies like Kasara, Palghar at railway stations seem confused as commuters complained most of them were seen just manually noting down jab certificate numbers with not many scanners and apps in place.

"This could be very risky as it would encourage fake travel. At Palghar, they only note down basic details like name, Aadhaar number and vaccination date. There is no process to check if a vaccine certificate is genuine or not. Anyone can make a fake certificate and get it stamped here," said local commuter activist Himanshu Vartak.

Another commuter told mid-day, "At Kasara, the staff has been making entries in a notebook and verifying it casually."

The goings-on have left activist Ranjan Kohli concerned. He said, "It is very dangerous that such things are happening in distant suburbs. It is from there that most of the crowds are coming on the local train. They will be travelling the most given that the working population is scattered in these suburbs."

Railway officials said that they have been issuing tickets as per guidelines. "If we find any discrepancies we are bringing them to the notice of local authorities," said an official.

Passes bought on August 12

. Western Railway: 5,949
. Central Railway: 17,775
. Total till 6 pm: 23, 724