Know about those two brave Indian soldiers who are going to be honored at the international level

International News: Two Indian peacekeepers who lost their lives while serving under the banner of the United Nations last year will be posthumously honored by the United Nations. The UN is observing this week as International Day of UN Peacekeepers. Brigadier General Amitabh Jha, who was attached to the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) and Havildar Sanjay Singh, who was deployed with the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), will be awarded the Dag Hammarskjold medal posthumously at a ceremony at the United Nations on May 29 to mark the International Day of UN Peacekeepers.

India is the fourth largest contributor

India has been continuously contributing to UN peacekeeping missions. It is the fourth largest country in terms of sending uniformed personnel to UN peacekeeping missions. Currently, India has more than 5,300 military and police personnel deployed in UN peacekeeping missions in Abyei, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lebanon, Somalia, South Sudan and Western Sahara.

During ceremonies at UN Headquarters to mark the Day of Peacekeepers, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will lay a wreath to pay tribute to the more than 4,400 UN peacekeepers who have lost their lives since 1948. Guterres will also preside over a ceremony to award posthumous Dag Hammarskjöld medals to 57 military, police and civilian peacekeepers who lost their lives while serving under UN leadership last year.

Where were the Indian soldiers deployed

Secretary-General Guterres will also present the 2024 Military Gender Advocate of the Year award to Squadron Leader Sharon Mwinsote Sime of Ghana and the UN Women Police Officer of the Year award to Superintendent Zainab Gblah of Sierra Leone, who both serve with the United Nations Interim Security Force (UNISFA) in Abyei.

Amitabh Jha's Peacekeeping Legacy

Brigadier General Amitabh Jha was serving as the Deputy Force Commander of the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) since April 2023. Earlier, he served as the acting force commander of UNDOF amid difficult circumstances after the fall of the Assad government in Syria. He has joined the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) as a military observer from 2005 to 2006. According to the UNDOF website, Brigadier Jha joined the UNDOF mission on April 14, 2023. He was an infantry officer and before his deployment to UNDOF, he had commanded a brigade and a special unit as a commanding officer in the glaciated mountainous regions of India. He passed away on December 24 last year. At the time of his death, he was serving in the Golan Heights.

Tributes to Two Remarkable Individuals

Amitabh Jha had keen interest in reading on topics related to military diplomacy, geopolitics, Indo-Pacific, modern and small wars, sub-conventional warfare and tribes and culture. Apart from this, he was also an avid sports lover who used to play military sports and also enjoyed backpacking in the mountains. Havildar Sanjay Singh was a resident of Rudrapur in Uttarakhand, he was part of the battalion of 11 Garhwal Rifles. He was posted on his peace mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was here that on 10 July 2024, during duty, his health suddenly deteriorated and then he died during treatment.