A man in India has reportedly received at least 8 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the country’s health authorities.
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Brahmdeo Mandal, a 65-year-old man, claims instead that he received 11 injections between February and December 2021.
The retired mail carrier claims the doses help him relieve pain and “stay healthy.” He also claims to have felt no perverse effects, reports BBC News.
“After receiving the vaccines, my pain disappeared. I felt pain in my knee and I walked with a cane. Now I don’t have any. I feel good, ”he says.
Mr Mandal was due to receive what he says was his 12th dose of the vaccine last week before he was pulled over.
An investigation is underway to determine how the 60-year-old managed to be inoculated on multiple occasions.
“We have evidence that indicates he received eight injections at four different centers,” Madhepura surgeon Amarendra Pratap Shahi told BBC.
Since the start of the vaccination campaign on January 16, 2021, India has mainly offered Covishield and Covaxin vaccines, manufactured in the country.
Delays of 12 to 16 weeks and 4 to 6 weeks are respectively required for these vaccines.
The vaccination is offered in more than 90,000 vaccination centers across the country, including in camps where an appointment is not necessary. To be inoculated, however, citizens must provide identification.
According to the preliminary investigation, Brahmdeo Mandal would have managed to receive “two doses in a period of 30 minutes” on the same day. The two injections had however been recorded in the vaccination portal.
“We don’t understand how this could have happened. There appears to have been a problem with the portal. We are also trying to determine whether there has been negligence on the part of the people stationed in the vaccination centers, ”says Mr. Shahi.
Mr Mandal says he has traveled to different vaccination centers in Madhepura and at least two others in surrounding areas – including one more than 100 kilometers away – to receive his injections. He also says he used different pieces of identification to register.
Finally, the man is said to have kept detailed notes of his injections specifying the dates, time and place of each one.