India has once again pressed for comprehensive reforms of the United Nations, stressing the urgent need to overhaul the Security Council, revitalise the General Assembly and strengthen the role of the Economic and Social Council to make multilateralism fit for the future.

Speaking at the Ministerial Roundtable on ‘Making Multilateralism Fit for the Future’ during the informal meeting of the UN General Assembly on the Pact for the Future, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Harish Parvathaneni, said that global institutions must reflect contemporary realities.

He emphasised that reforming the Security Council, revitalising the General Assembly and empowering ECOSOC to advance sustainable development in its economic, social and environmental dimensions are essential steps.

He highlighted concerns over the UN’s effectiveness, noting that public confidence in the organisation has suffered due to the Security Council’s inability to respond effectively to ongoing conflicts. He said that the Council has failed to intervene meaningfully in raging conflicts across different regions, leaving affected populations to endure human suffering. This failure has called into question the foundational principle of the UN’s establishment, namely the maintenance of international peace and security.

Parvathaneni argued that the Council’s shortcomings stem from its outdated structure. He pointed out that an eighty-year-old architecture designed for the 1940s is ill-equipped to address contemporary challenges.

He criticised the lack of progress in reforming the Council, noting that discussions have been confined to an endless cycle of prepared statements under the Intergovernmental Negotiations framework. He said that action points 39 to 41 have remained on paper, which is untenable and must change.

Referring to the Pact for the Future, he explained that the action points on Intergovernmental Negotiations were drafted by the then IGN Co-Chairs rather than the Pact’s Co-Facilitators. India, he said, had significant reservations about those provisions, but nevertheless supported the Pact in a constructive spirit.

The Ambassador also called for reforms of the international financial architecture. He stressed that adequate, affordable and predictable financing is indispensable for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. He urged that international financial institutions must become more representative, responsive and development-orientated, while still preserving their mandates.

Reaffirming India’s commitment to global governance reforms, Parvathaneni declared that India will continue to support all genuine efforts to implement reforms in global governance institutions, including the Security Council and international financial institutions. He said that the joint endeavour must be to make these institutions fit for purpose, equipped to handle present and future challenges of humanity.

India’s intervention reflects its long-standing position that the UN must adapt to the realities of the twenty-first century. The call for reform aligns with broader international debates on restructuring multilateral institutions to ensure they remain effective, legitimate and responsive.

The emphasis on financing and sustainable development also underscores India’s view that reform must extend beyond political structures to include economic and social dimensions of global governance.

ANI