Amid his busy trip to Ukrainian capital Kyiv, PM Narendra Modi greeted the nation on India’s maiden National Space Day to mark the first anniversary of the historic landing of Chandrayaan-3 lander on the uncharted south pole of the Moon on August 23 last year.
Modi, who had himself declared August 23 as the National Space Day after the successful mission, posted on X, “We recall with great pride our nation’s achievements in the space sector. It is also a day to laud the contributions of our space scientists. Our govt has taken a series of futuristic decisions relating to this sector and we will do even more in the times to come.”
President Droupadi Murmu, who was the chief guest at the National Space Day function at Bharat Mandapam, in presence of space minister Jitendra Singh and Isro chairman S Somanath, said, “The progress of India's space sector is extraordinary. Be it a successfully completed Mars mission with limited resources or the successful launch of more than a hundred satellites at once, we have made many impressive achievements.” The National Space Day was conducted on the theme ‘Touching Lives While Touching the Moon: India's Space Saga’.
Murmu, who a day before presented the Vigyan Team Award to Team Chandrayaan-3 in the field of Space, Science and Technology, appreciated Isro scientists for the “ wonderful journey and remarkable achievements”.
After witnessing models of India's next-generation rocket ‘Soorya’ and Bharatiya Antarkish Station during a space exhibition, Murmu commended desi startup Agnikul Cosmos for successfully launching “a single-piece 3Dprinted semi-cryogenic engine-powered rocket, the first such achievement” in the world. The President, however, cautioned Indian scientists “to be prepared for future challenges” like space debris, which “can cause problems for space missions". She appreciated the Isro System for Safe & Sustainable Operations Management facility, which ensures continuous progress of space research activities.
