Ruchira Kamboj, India's first woman UN envoy, as she takes charge: 'To the girls out there...'

A 1987-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, Kamboj had been serving as India's envoy to Bhutan. She succeeds T S Tirumurti as the Indian ambassador to the UN.

Senior diplomat Ruchira Kamboj who took charge as India's new permanent representative to the United Nations on Tuesday presented her credentials to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. In a tweet, she said it was a privilege to be the first Indian woman to be given the honour to hold this position. She also slipped in a note for the girls: "To the girls out there, we all can make it!"

Ruchira Kamboj with António Guterres.(@RuchiraKamboj)

A 1987-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, Kamboj had been serving as India's envoy to Bhutan. She succeeds T S Tirumurti as the Indian ambassador to the UN. She is also the country's first woman envoy to be serving at the world body's headquarters in New York.

As she took charge as India's envoy to the UN, congratulations poured in. Kamboj’s predecessor Ambassador T S Tirumurti said, "Congratulations and all good wishes for your success Ruchira! @IndiaUNNewYork."

Kamboj was the all-India women's topper of the 1987 Civil Services batch and the topper of the foreign service batch of that year.

She began her diplomatic journey in Paris where she was posted in the Indian Embassy to France from 1989-1991. Kamboj, however, later returned to Delhi where she worked as under secretary in the Europe West Division of the ministry of external affairs from 1991–96.

From 1996-1999, she served in Mauritius as First Secretary (Economic and Commercial) and Head of Chancery at the Indian High Commission in Port Louis.

Kamboj served as the high commissioner of India to South Africa, with concurrent accreditation to the Kingdom of Lesotho from July, 2017 to March, 2019.

She assumed charge as Indian envoy to Bhutan on 17 May, 2019.

Other women Ambassadors at the Council include US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield, UK Permanent Representative (PR) Ambassador Barbara Woodward, Norway's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York Mona Juul etc.

(With agency inputs)