(On hold) India's candidate for Law of Sea Tribunal honoured at reception with MPs' delegation 

United Nations, Oct 30 India’s candidate for the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) Bimal Patel was honoured at a reception with members of the delegation of Members of Parliament by Permanent Representative P Harish.

The reception was held on Wednesday at India's UN Mission to coincide with the International Law Week at the UN that Patel is attending.

Patel is India’s nominee for the election that will take place in June next year, and India has been actively campaigning for him.

He is scheduled to speak on Thursday on 'The Resilience of Conventional Multilateralism' along with some of the other candidates at a UN event sponsored by France.

Patel, an international jurist, currently serves on the UN’s International Law Commission and is the vice chancellor of the Rashtriya Raksha University in Gujarat.

Neeru Chadha from India who was elected a member of the ITLOS in 2016 completes her nine-year term next year. She is currently vice president of the tribunal.

The Members of Parliament drawn from across India’s political spectrum are the second group to attend the General Assembly session as part of the Indian delegation.

They have been presenting India’s position in addresses to the General Assembly and to its various committees, and meeting with UN officials and diplomats.

On Wednesday, they met with Kanni Wignaraja, the UN’s Assistant Secretary-General and UN Development Programme (UNDP) Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific.

India’s Mission said on X, “They had an engaging discussion on India’s longstanding partnership with UNDP and also highlighted ways in which this partnership can contribute to India’s vision of a #ViksitBharat by 2047”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s goal of making India a developed country by the centenary of its Independence.

At a meeting with officials of the UNICEF, their discussions focussed on the agency’s work “across the world, with particular emphasis on their engagement and partnership with India on policies related to children’s health and well- being”.

South Africa’s Permanent Representative Mathu Joyini met with the MPs for a discussion of topics of significance to Global South countries, particularly in the UN.

They also discussed joint and multilateral efforts of New Delhi and Pretoria, like the IBSA, which brings them together with Brazil for development initiatives.

Two of the MPs spoke at meetings on nuclear issues.

D Purandeswari, BJP MP from Andhra Pradesh, reaffirmed India’s strong support for International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) pivotal role in promoting the peaceful, safe and secure uses of nuclear science and technology.

Speaking at the General Assembly session on the IAEA’s report, she said India’s progress in nuclear power and research, including the development of indigenous CAR-T cell therapy, is improving access to affordable cancer treatment.

Globally, she said, India supports the work of the IAEA through capacity-building, technical cooperation, and sharing of expertise with partner countries.

Speaking at a briefing by the Security Council’s committee on nuclear non-proliferation, GK Vasan reiterated India’s commitment to the global efforts to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

The panel, known as 1540 Committee after the Council resolution creating it, also works on preventing the spread of chemical and biological weapons.

Vasan, who is also the president of the Tamil Maanila Congress, said India has a robust legal and regulatory system to implement the provisions of Resolution 1540.

One of the resolution’s provisions is to prevent terrorists from getting weapons of mass destruction.

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