NEW DELHI: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on Sunday referred to India as a messenger of peace in his Mann Ki Baat radio address. Highlighting India's contributions towards global peace, unity and harmony through
UN peacekeeping missions across the world, the PM said India was the third highest contributor to UN peacekeeping missions, with 7,000 security personnel deployed across the globe.
Recalling his
Diwali interactions with security forces in Gurez sector of J&K and referring to them as memories he will cherish, the PM said nearly 18,000 Indian security personnel had so far lent their services in UN peacekeeping operations. "Till August 2017, Indian soldiers had lent their services in about 50 of the total of 71 peacekeeping operations undertaken by the UN the world over," Modi said.
The PM's radio address highlighted the role of Indian women who played leading roles in peacekeeping efforts. He added that India was the first country to send a female police unit to Liberia for the UN peace mission, a move that inspired other nations to follow suit. The PM also made special references to Captain Gurbachan Singh Salaria, who died in Congo, and Lt Gen Prem Chand who was appointed in 1989, at the age of 72, as the force commander for an operation in Namibia where he rendered his services to ensure the independence of the country. Modi also remembered Gen K S Thimaiyya, who, in addition to serving as India's
Army chief, lead the UN peacekeeping force in
Cyprus
.