Government's Surokkha service recipients have been facing great difficulty in accessing the website, which is dedicated to the registration for Covid-19 vaccination and download of certificates.
The site has been temporarily down for maintenance, leaving many without access to their vaccine certificates, which are a must to serve various purposes.
On 12 July 2024, the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Division confirmed the issue, noting that the website was undergoing urgent maintenance due to server-related problems.
The homepage displayed a message informing users of the temporary shutdown. ICT officials said efforts were underway to resolve the issue, with hopes to restore services soon.
The Surokkha platform, developed by the ICT Division in collaboration with the Health Directorate under the Prime Minister's Office, is a key digital tool for managing Covid-19 vaccinations.
It allows citizens to register for vaccines and download their certificates.
Meanwhile, the ICT Division continues to address other challenges.
This correspondent attempted to access the app for his certificate but received a message stating: "The task cannot be completed at this time. Please try again later."
Earlier on 22 October 2022, the division warned the public of fraudulent schemes exploiting the Surokkha platform, with scammers spreading false information regarding vaccine services.
Talking to the FE, ICT secretary Shish Haider Chowdhury said, "We are working to restore services that have been unavailable recently."
"A meeting was held, and efforts are underway to re-launch the service within the next 10 to 15 days," he mentioned.
Surokkha services were halted due to non-payment of a substantial outstanding bill, stated Mr Shish.
The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) is currently working to clear the dues in order to restore services, according to him.
Prof Dr Mijanur Rahman, director of the Management Information System at DGHS, said a seven-member committee has been formed to assess whether the services of the app are financially viable in the current circumstances.
However, the committee has not met yet, but will do so soon in order to restart the services, he tells the FE.
In the meantime, according to Dr Rahman, service recipients can obtain their Covid-19 certificates directly from the sixth floor of the new DGHS building.
He said maintaining the app was expensive, thus making it difficult to restart its pack of services.
Dr Rahman, however, hopes that the app's services can be restored soon.
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