Forces express gratitude to India’s Covid warriors
Fly-pasts, petal showers on hospitals, army bands part of tributes
NEW DELHI: From fighter jets performing fly-pasts over Delhi’s Rajpath and Mumbai’s Marine Drive to helicopters showering petals over hospitals dedicated to treating Covid-19 patients and transport aircraft flying in formation over multiple cities; the armed forces on Sunday carried out exercises across the country in a concerted gesture of gratitude to people at the frontline of the battle against the virus.
Army bands performed outside Covid-19 hospitals and sailors on-board India’s largest warship, INS Vikramaditya, formed a human chain on the aircraft carrier’s flight deck to pay tribute to the corona warriors. Several warships were also illuminated at anchorage at Mumbai, Porbandar, Karwar, Vizag, Chennai, Kochi and Port Blair.
Senior officials said all the activities planned for the day, as announced by chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat, were carried out as scheduled.
Acknowledging the role of the armed forces in honouring Covid-19 warriors, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, “Saluting those who are at the forefront, bravely fighting Covid-19. Great gesture by our armed forces.”
Fighter jets and transport planes staged fly-pasts across the length and breadth of the country, from Srinagar to Thiruvananthapuram and Dibrugarh to Kutch.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh tweeted: “I thank the Armed Forces for their special initiatives like fly pasts, showering flower petals and several other performances to express gratitude towards medical professionals, police and other frontline warriors. The entire nation stands united in these challenging times.”
The fighter jets that featured in the fly-past over Delhi-ncr flew at a height of 500 to 1,000 metres and were visible to the residents of Delhi from their rooftops.
Apart from Delhi-ncr, the IAF’S fighter jets carried out flypasts over Mumbai, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Patna and Lucknow. Also, transport aircraft flew over 10 cities including Delhi, Srinagar, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Mumbai and Hyderabad.
Air force helicopters showered petals on hospitals across 23 locations including Delhi, Leh, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Mumbai, Jaipur, Dispur, Itanagar, Trivandrum and Chennai. Navy and coastguard helicopters showered petals over hospitals in Mumbai, Goa, Chennai and Port Blair.
The air force also showered petals over the National Police Memorial in Delhi and wreaths were laid at the memorial on behalf of the three service chiefs to recognize the contribution of policemen who are at the forefront of the Covid-19 fight.
Coastguard ships were also lit up across multiple locations on the country’s eastern and western sea boards.
In Rajasthan, the Sapta Shakti Command organised multiple events to felicitate representatives of the Armed Forces. Defence spokesperson Col Sombit Ghosh said commemorative events with participation of military bands were organised to convey appreciation. “Helicopters of the Indian Air Force also joined in a fly-past showering petals over SMS Hospital Jaipur as a mark of gratitude. Fighter Jets Sukhoi-30 passed over Rajasthan Assembly and transport aircraft C-130 passed over Jalmahal Palace, Jaipur to express gratitude and solidarity,” Col Ghosh said.
In Rishikesh, an Army chopper flew over the AIIMS building and showered flower petals. A team of Army officials also visited the hospital and offered gifts to the staff as a thanking gesture.
Dr Ravi Kant, director, AIIMS Rishikesh, said, “We all from AIIMS Rishikesh are really grateful to the defence forces for their gesture towards us...a team of Army officials visited us .... ”