Digilocker services are now available on WhatsApp via the MyGov Helpdesk chatbot. For beginners, Digilocker is a smartphone application developed by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) with the aim of providing citizens with access to authenticated documents in digital form. Documents issued on the Digilocker platform are deemed to be at the same level as the original physical documents in accordance with Rule 9A of the Information Technology Rules (Maintenance and retention of information by intermediaries providing digital locker facilities) notified on February 8, 2017.
“Offering Digilocker services on MyGov Helpdesk is a natural step forward and a step towards providing citizens with easy access to essential services through WhatsApp’s easy and accessible platform. About 100 million people are already registered on Digilocker and more than 5 billion documents have been released to date. It is believed that the service on WhatsApp will digitally empower millions of people by helping them access authentic documents and information directly from their phones, “said Abhishek Singh, CEO of MyGov.
Here’s how to access Digilocker services via the MyGov Helpdesk chatbot on WhatsApp:
- Record “+ 91-9013151515” as the contact number in the phone book MyGov Helpdesk
- Open WhatsApp and refresh the contact list
- Tap the MyGov Helpdesk to open the chat window
- Type ‘Namaste’, ‘Hi’ or ‘Digilocker’ to activate the chatbot
- Chatbot displays the available options. Tap on “Digilocker Services” here
- Enter the 12-digit base number when the chatbot asks for it. You need to link and authenticate your Digilocker account to access its services through WhatsApp
- Enter OTP to continue
- Once the OTP is confirmed, the chatbot will list all the documents related to your Digilocker account. However, you can only upload one document at a time. To download, type and send the number listed in the document
- Tap on more documents to return to the list of available documents
Digilocker is a new addition to the services available through the MyGov Helpdesk chatbot on WhatsApp. You can also access CoWin services like Vaccine Certification through the same chatbot. To do this, follow these steps:
- Step 1: Open WhatsApp and say “Hi” to the MyGov Helpdesk chatbot
- Step 2: Tap on Cowin Services in Options
- Step 3: The boat displays a list of available services. Currently, vaccine-related services such as appointments, certifications, etc. are listed as option 2. Type ‘2’ and send
- Step 4: To upload the vaccine certificate, type “2” and send
- Step 5: Verify by OTP details
- Step 6: Once you enter the OTP, the bot will display the names of the people registered on the Cowin website along with the number.
- Step 7: Enter the number listed by the user and submit the certificate for download. The bot will then send the vaccine certificate in WhatsApp in PDF format.