Lead

The United Nations will honor Indian peacekeeper Major Abhilasha Barak with the 2025 Military Gender Advocate of the Year award, recognizing her outreach efforts with women and girls during her deployment in Lebanon. The announcement was made ahead of the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, observed annually on May 29.

Coverage Comparison

Reports from The Hindu confirm the awards. Barak, serving with the Indian Battalion as Commander of the Female Engagement Team in the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), is also the first woman combat helicopter pilot of the Indian Army. The award recognizes her outreach and community engagement activities for women and adolescent girls, as well as gender sensitization training for peacekeepers.

Key Claims

  • Major Abhilasha Barak will receive the 2025 UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year award for her outreach and community engagement activities with women and adolescent girls, and for gender sensitization training for peacekeepers.
  • Lance Havildar Harbhajan Singh and Naib Subedar Sujit Kumar Pradhan will be posthumously awarded the Dag Hammarskjold Medal for their service with MONUSCO and UNMISS, respectively.
  • India is the second-largest contributor of uniformed personnel to UN Peacekeeping, with over 4,200 military and police personnel currently deployed.
  • More than 180 Indian peacekeepers have died serving in UN missions since 1948.

Perspectives

Reports from The Hindu emphasize India's substantial contribution to UN peacekeeping and the recognition of its personnel. Ambassador Harish Parvathaneni, India's Permanent Representative to the UN, highlighted that 'Blue Helmets continue to be the face of the UN in crisis spots in different parts of the world.' The award also highlights the role of women in peace operations.

The UN Headquarters in New York will observe the Day on June 5, when Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will lay a wreath to honor the men and women who served in UN peacekeeping and lost their lives, according to a UN statement.