The Supreme Court on Monday pulled up the central government over its Covid-19 vaccination policies — mandatory CoWIN registration and procurement of vaccines. A special bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud, L N Rao and S Ravindrabhat questioned the need for making registration on CoWIN must for vaccination without keeping in mind the real ‘digital India’ situation.

“You keep on saying the situation is dynamic but policymakers must have their ears on ground. You keep on saying digital India, digital India but the situation is actually different in rural areas. How will an illiterate labourer, from Jharkhand get registered in Rajasthan? Tell us how you will address this digital divide,” the bench sought to know from Solicitor General Tushar Mehta. “For rural areas, you have said villagers can register on CoWIN through NGOs. Our law clerks and secretaries have tried to register on CoWIN, so we know how it works.” The SC was hearing a suo motu case on management of Covid-19 situation in the country.