NEW DELHI A 160-member Border Security Force (BSF) contingent, comprising 25 women personnel, will head to Democratic Republic of Congo on Wednesday for deployment with the UN peacekeeping mission there.Congo — the third largest country in Africa, bordering Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi — has been plagued with armed conflict for decades now.In a sendoff ceremony organised for the BSF contingent — comprising seven officers including a woman, nine subordinate officers and 144 other personnel including 24 female constables — at the BSF headquarters at CGO Complex here, BSF DG Daljit Singh Chawdhary asked the personnel to maintain exemplary conduct throughout the mission. “You have been trained for the task, and I am sure you will ensure that the flag of the country and the force is held aloft,” he told the personnel The DG reminding them of the “unique recognition” BSF has earned by valiantly guarding the border and destroying several Pakistani posts during Operation Sindoor.This will be the 18th BSF contingent, led by Commandant Kailash Singh Mehta, to join the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) located at Beni, a BSF spokesperson said.“The contingent will be replacing the 17th BSF contingent, which until now was deployed in Beni and is returning on June 4,” he said.The new BSF contingent has undergone an 11-week-long pre-deployment training, including subjects like UN peacekeeping guidelines, standard operating procedures and policies, public order management, human rights and sexual and gender-based violence, and VIP security protection of civilians, the spokesperson said.