Centre to launch U-WIN portal for tracking routine immunisations by early October

The government is set to launch ‘U-WIN’ portal, designed on the lines of indigenously developed COVID-19 vaccine management system, Co-WIN, for maintaining an electronic registry of routine immunisations. The U-WIN portal is going to be the single source of information for immunisation services. It will document all vaccination and immunisation programmes being run in the country, including registration, follow-ups, and vaccination certificates. The digital platform will also be sending out alerts to the users for upcoming jabs.

The U-WIN programme has been designed to digitise the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) and it is presently being run in pilot mode in two districts of each state and union territory. The platform will be used to register and vaccinate every pregnant woman, record her delivery outcome, register every newborn delivery, administer birth doses and all vaccination events thereafter, as informed by official sources. U-WIN, which will replicate Co-WIN, was launched on January 11, 2023 in 65 districts spread across the country. India is planning to fully digitise its UIP and move to a new platform called U-WIN, which will issue digital vaccination certificates, unveiling a mechanism similar to Co-WIN. All vaccinations till age 13 administered under the UIP will now be digitally documented on U-WIN.

“The portal is ready, and it is just a matter of time before it is formally launched and made fully functional,” a senior central government functionary informed on condition of anonymity. Another senior government official, on the condition of anonymity, added, “It is on the lines of Co-WIN and if all goes well then the launch is likely to happen in the first week of October.”

How will the U-WIN portal benefit the citizens?

Vaccination records under UIP are being maintained manually as of now. This new initiative will do away with the hassle of keeping a physical record. It will enable the digitisation of session planning, and updating vaccination status on a real-time basis, an official said. Presently, multiple vaccines and doses lead to difficulty in monitoring,stated another official. The system is also plagued by the absence of a mechanism for individual tracking. There is also lack of awareness among beneficiaries about sessions, location and date, especially in urban areas and iniquity in immunisation coverage in states/UTs.

Besides, another major issue is that immunisation at private health facilities is not recorded, the official explained.  The U-WIN is going to be the single source of information for immunisation services which will record pregnancy details and outcome, newborn registration and immunisation at birth. There will also be live updating of vaccination status, delivery outcome, and planning of RI (routine immunisation) sessions.  

“There will be digital registrations of all pregnant women and newborns for individualised tracking for vaccination, reminders for upcoming doses and follow-up of dropouts. Healthcare workers and programme managers will be able to generate real-time data of routine immunisation sessions and vaccination coverage for better planning and vaccine distribution. There will be details of sessions planned in their area for the coming month and due-list of beneficiaries,” an official explained.

For pregnant women and children, vaccine acknowledgement and immunisation cards linked to ABHA ID (Ayushman Bharat Heath Account) will be generated and all states and districts will get access to a common database to track and vaccinate beneficiaries. 

Besides, through the platform, citizens can check nearby ongoing routine immunisation sessions, and book appointments, the official told the reporters. “Besides, all the e-vaccination certificates like Covid vaccination certificates will have pictures of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” the official said.

The progress so far…

According to the status update on beneficiary data and sessions from states/UTs till August 28, more than 6.8 million beneficiaries have been registered and more than 13 million vaccine doses have been recorded and tracked through U-WIN. The users will also get certificates saved and sorted through the DigiLocker app (where a copy of these certificates will be stored).

According to the data received, 33,58,770 infants, in the age-group of 0-1 years, and 20,98,338 children aged 1-5 years, have been registered. Besides, 14,20,708 pregnant women have been registered and 1,32,60,903 doses are being digitally tracked.

Reportedly, the U-WIN also featured during the on-going G20 discussions and events as a ‘first-of-its-type’ that India is attempting in the digital healthcare space. Apart from Co-WIN, which has obtained universal international acclamation, India’s Jan Aushadi scheme has also drawn appreciation and attention from Indonesia’s Health Minsiter. The latter has expressed his willingness to replicate the scheme there.

Incidentally, a Health Ministry official familiar with the matter pointed out that co-ordination with states continues to be one of the major challenges in the program. “The project is at a pilot stage. But we are looking at a national roll-out of the U-WIN soon. Discussions are on with state governments too,” the official said. Many of the state governments have their own birth registration and data management systems, including recording vaccination and immunisation programs for children and are still hesitant on using U-WIN as the first platform of choice.

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