India’s Permanent Representative at UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj on Thursday received the Dag Hammarskjold Medal in honour of three Indian peacekeepers who lost their lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Iraq last year.

"Remembering the fallen, honouring the brave. Ahead of the solemn #PKDay ceremony at @UN HQ today, PR @ruchirakamboj articulates our profound gratitude for the peacekeepers' sacrifices and commitment to their mission. We salute their bravery and offer our deepest respects," Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations, New York tweeted.

Three Indian peacekeepers who died while doing their duties for the UN last year are among the 103 military, police, and civilian peacekeepers who will receive a coveted medal posthumously in recognition of their service and heroic sacrifice.

BSF jawans Shishupal Singh and Sanwala Ram Vishnoi, who both served with the Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), and Shaber Taher Ali, who served in a civilian capacity with the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), were honoured at the UN General Assembly Hall on Friday.

Shishupal Singh and Sanwala Ram Vishnoi deployed as part of a United Nations mission at Butembo, Congo, on June 2, 2022, were among five people killed during an anti-U.N. protest in the Eastern city of Goma near the strife-torn country's border with Uganda.

“India’s contribution to U.N. peacekeeping needs no long introduction. Sufficient to say that since our first participation in a U.N. peacekeeping mission in 1950, India has been one of the most prolific contributors to peace efforts worldwide,” said Indian envoy Kamboj. India has deployed more than 2,75,000 troops, including a significant number of women peacekeepers, in over 51 U.N. peacekeeping missions.

“Sadly, this has also entailed the supreme sacrifice in the finest traditions of the profession of arms. Later today, a solemn ceremony will take place at U.N. headquarters in New York, where we will honour the memory of three Indian peacekeepers with the Dag Hammarskjold Medal,” said Kamboj.

The medal is the highest honour awarded to U.N. Peacekeepers who have distinguished themselves by exceptional courage, devotion to duty, and sacrifice in the cause of peace.

Marking the 75th anniversary of UN peacekeeping and observing the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers on Thursday, the United Nations held a ceremony honouring the more than 4,200 peacekeepers who have died since 1948, when a historic decision was made by the UN Security Council to send military observers to the Middle East to supervise the implementation of Israeli-Arab armistice agreements. 

Image source: India Today