By IANS,
New Delhi : Four UN peacekeepers from India will be honoured posthumously Friday at a function to mark the International Day of United Nations (UN) Peacekeepers at the New York headquarters of the organisation.
“This year’s commemorative ceremonies come at a time when the services of UN peacekeepers are in greater demand than ever. There are currently more than 113,000 peacekeepers, including 90,000 military and police personnel from 117 countries, serving in 18 operations in four continents,” a UN information centre statement issued here said.
According to the statement, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon is expected to oversee a solemn wreath-laying ceremony in honour of the 132 peacekeeping personnel, 10 of them women, who lost their lives in attacks, illnesses or accidents in 2008.
Four personnel from India – head constable Mahua Ghosh and constable Bharti Nagoriya who lost their lives while serving with the UN Mission in Liberia; head constable Subhash Chandra in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and warrant officer Pal Satya in Sudan – will be among those honoured, the statement said.
As part of the commemoration ceremonies, Dag Hammarskj�ld Medals will be awarded posthumously to the military, police and civilian personnel who lost their lives in UN peacekeeping operations. The medals will be received by representatives of the respective Permanent Missions to be forwarded to the next of kin.
Of the 117 countries that provide uniformed peacekeepers to the UN, the largest contributors are Pakistan (10,626), Bangladesh (9,220), India (8,617), Nigeria (5,792) and Nepal (3,856).
At present, Indian peacekeepers are serving in Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Lebanon, Sudan and Timor-Leste.