<span style="color: black;">India hosted the first ever SCO Seminar on Role of Women in Armed Forces today. Secretary (West) Reenat Sandhu highlighted the role of India's women military officers at the global level in UN peacekeeping missions. She said, the past decades have opened up new vistas for women in the Armed Forces of India. She said, India has been an active participant in the deliberations on issues focusing on women empowerment and gender mainstreaming at various UN bodies. The Indian Army has contributed women officers as Military Observers and Staff Officers apart from them forming part of Medical Units being deployed in UN Missions.</span><br />'' <span style="color: black;"><br />''In 1960, women of the Indian Armed Forces Medical Services headed the UN Peacekeeping mission in the Republic of Congo to assist with the setting up of a 400-bed hospital. In 2007, India created history by deploying the first ever all-female Formed Police Unit for UN Peacekeeping in Liberia. In 2019, India deployed a Female Engagement Team as part of the UN Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This female engagement team deployed in Congo has played a critical role in peacekeeping and inspiring women in local communities.</span>