26 Corona crusaders will attend ‘At Home’ event

NEWDELHI:A nursing officer who organised ICU care for patients in the most difficult working conditions, a laboratory technician who conducted RT-PCR and rapid antigen Covid-19 tests in high-risk areas and a Delhi Police head constable who distributed food packets among the poor and migrant workers are some of the 26 “Corona Warriors” who will sit in a special enclosure at the “At Home” function at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Independence Day.

Among those who have been invited for the function, four people will represent the All India Institute of Medical Sciences and three will represent the Safdarjung Hospital. Out of the 26 special guests, eight are women, according to the list of invitees accessed by HT.

About 100 guests, including the “Corona Warriors”, are expected to attend the programme which will begin with a brief speech by President Ram Nath Kovind to honour the frontline workers. Dishes such samosa, tea and dhokla will be served by a limited number of waiters amid social distancing guidelines over the Covid-19 pandemic. All waiters have tested negative for Covid-19, a person aware of the developments said. All guest tables will be named after rivers of India and each guest will be ushered in to his or her assigned place, the person added.

From senior and junior doctors to nursing officers, technicians, pharmacists, midwives and Asha workers, nursing orderlies, security guards, sanitation workers and housekeeping staff — a wide range of people involved in India’s prolonged battle against Covid-19 will be honoured at the event.

The list includes three members of Delhi Police and a woodcutter at the Nigambodh Ghat, where funerals are conducted.