At 10.30 a.m. on Sunday, an Mi17 helicopter of the Indian Air Force flew over and showered flower petals over two top Bengaluru hospitals.
The century-old State-run Victoria Hospital and defence healthcare hub, the Command Hospital, have been in the frontline of COVID-19 testing and treatment in Karnataka over the past two-odd months, the Ministry of Defence said.
Doctors and healthcare personnel of the two hospitals came out to cheer back at the IAF, which has created support infrastructure and critical logistics during the battle against the pandemic. A moving IAF band performed at Victoria Hospital. The Command Hospital is a nodal centre to test for COVID-19 and has tested 852 of 856 samples to date.
Around 3.15 p.m., IAF’s C-130 J transport plane flew past Vidhana Soudha. It was flying from Srinagar to Thiruvananthapuram.
Across the country, the Armed Forces saluted COVID-19 warriors in different ways. In Karwar, where the Navy has a base, INS Vikramaditya was illuminated around 7.30 p.m. as a tribute. Brig. Shahnawaz, Deputy General Officer Commanding, HQ Karnataka & Ketala Sub Area, called on Chief Secretary T.M. Vijay Bhaskar.
Senior Army personnel visited State officials, hospitals and police stations to express gratitude to the staff. They distributed hampers.
