New Delhi: India’s Armed Forces will conduct fly-pasts, light up ships at sea and shower flower petals on hospitals in an elaborate display on Sunday (May 3) to thank doctors, medical staff and other frontline workers battling the COVID-19 outbreak, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat said on Friday.

“The Air Force will conduct fly-pasts from Srinagar to Thiruvananthapuram and another from Dibrugarh in Assam to Kutch in Gujarat on May 3 to express gratitude to all COVID-19 Warriors. It will include both transport and fighter aircraft.

“On May 3, there are some special activities that the nation will get to witness from all the three Services,” the CDS said. IAF will also be showering petals on hospitals across the country which are involved in the fight against COVID-19.

“The Army on its part will conduct mounted band displays along some of the COVID-19 hospitals in almost every district of our country. To express solidarity that we stand by our Police personnel, the Armed Forces will also lay wreaths at the Police Memorial on May 3,” he added.

“We (wish to) convey our gratitude to each and every Corona Warrior and all the citizens of our nation. The nation stood together, it showed resilience to overcome this crisis. In our country, everybody understands that when it comes to the nation we have to stand together,” he added.

The “gesture of special gratitude” will consist of the Air Force conducting fly-pasts “from Kashmir to Kanyakumari (and) from Assam in the northeast to Kutch in Gujarat”. Meanwhile, the Navy will display its gratitude by lighting up ships stationed along India’s shoreline, General Rawat added.

A third “gesture of special gratitude” will be helicopters showering petals on hospitals and army bands playing outside medical buildings in most districts. The announcements by the Chief of Defence Staff were welcomed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.