Major Abhilasha Barak Conferred UN Military Gender Award 2025

By: Women Entrepreneurs Review Team | Saturday, 23 May 2026

Indian Major Abhilasha Barak will be presented with the prestigious United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award for the year 2025. Currently, Abhilasha is serving in Indian Battalion in the UNIFIL Mission as the commander of the Female Engagement Team.

Abhilasha was selected to receive the award because of her involvement with empowering women and girls through various programs of leadership in Lebanon. The award ceremony for Abhilasha will take place on the day of International Day of UN Peacekeepers on May 29th.

Key Highlights:

• Major Abhilasha Barak wins 2025 UN Gender Advocate Award for UNIFIL service
• First woman combat helicopter pilot of Indian Army honoured by United Nations
• India reaffirms strong UN peacekeeping role with 642 troops in UNIFIL deployment

"Proud to announce that Major Abhilasha Barak has been awarded the 2025 @UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award. She is being recognised for her outreach and community engagement activities for women and adolescent girls and gender sensitisation training for peacekeepers," the Permanent Mission of India to the UN said in a post on X Friday.

This honor makes Abhilasha the third person in India to receive such an award, following Major Suman Gawani and Major Radhika Sen, who have both earned it because of their commendable services to UN Peacekeeping Forces. She is also the first woman combat helicopter pilot in the Indian Army.

Recalling the proud moment for India, Major Suman became a recipient of the 2019 UN Military Gender Advocate Award, jointly recognised with Brazilian officer Commander Carla Monteiro de Castro Araujo of MINUSCA.

In addition, Major Radhika subsequently received the 2023 award for her contributions with MONUSCO in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

This award was initiated in 2016 by the Office of Military Affairs in the Department of Peace Operations, to recognize peacekeeping troops who promote the objectives of UNSC Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security through the implementation of gender perspective in their UN peacekeeping operations.

Each year, one person is selected from among the nominated individuals by Force Commanders and Heads of Mission in all UN peacekeeping missions, according to UN Peacekeeping.

India still makes itself present in the list of top contributors of troop police to UN peace missions. As regards UNIFIL, there are 7,538 peacekeepers from 48 nations operating in the region as of February 2026, where India contributes 642, ranking fourth in terms of number after Italy, Indonesia, and Spain.

March saw India condemn attacks against UN peacekeepers in Lebanon and call for ensuring the security of Blue Helmets from all sides. In addition, India aligned with almost 30 countries contributing troops in raising its voice against the growing tension in the region, condemning the “reckless decision” by Hezbollah to ally with Iran to attack Israel.