Major Radhika Sen of Bharat has been recognised as a distinguished leader and role model in the United Nations, receiving the prestigious 2023 United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres presented the award during a ceremony at the UN headquarters on the International Day of UN Peacekeepers.
“Major Sen is a true leader and role model. Her service is a true credit to the United Nations as a whole. Please join me in congratulating Major Radhika Sen of India. I could not be prouder to confer her with the Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award,” Guterres stated at the event.
Major Sen served with the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) from March 2023 to April 2024. As the Commander of MONUSCO’s Engagement Platoon for the Indian Rapid Deployment Battalion (INDRDB), she played a critical role in peacekeeping efforts, especially in engaging with conflict-affected communities, including women and girls.
Guterres praised Major Sen’s efforts in providing a safe platform for women to share their ideas and concerns, enabling the mission to better respond to their needs. Her work as the gender focal point and in civil-military tasks, including vocational training for women and youth, highlighted her commitment to gender-sensitive peacekeeping.
Born in Himachal Pradesh in 1993, Major Sen joined the Indian Army eight years ago after graduating as a biotech engineer and pursuing a Master’s degree from IIT Bombay. Her tenure in MONUSCO demonstrated exceptional leadership and dedication to the Women, Peace, and Security agenda.
Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix and India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj, both lauded Major Sen for her outstanding service and contribution to peacekeeping.
In her acceptance speech, Major Sen expressed deep gratitude and humility, dedicating the award to her colleagues in MONUSCO and her home country, India. She emphasized the importance of gender-sensitive peacekeeping and the need to address the needs of all those affected by conflict, advocating for the inclusion of women in nation-building efforts.
Major Sen is the second Indian peacekeeper to receive this prestigious award, following Major Suman Gawani, who was honored in 2019. The award, established in 2016, acknowledges the dedication of individual military peacekeepers in promoting UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security.
Bharat remains a significant contributor to UN peacekeeping missions, currently deploying over 6,000 military and police personnel. Nearly 180 Indian peacekeepers have sacrificed their lives in the line of duty, the highest number among all troop-contributing countries. This year, Naik Dhananjay Kumar Singh, who served with MONUSCO, was posthumously honoured with the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal.
