ISRO within half century, has become first to have landed on South Pole of Moon: Dr Jitendra Singh

New Delhi: As India celebrates its maiden National Space Day today, Union MoS, Department of Space, Dr Jitendra Singh while addressing a gathering at Bharat Mandapam said that ISRO, within half a century, has become the first to have landed on the South Pole of the Moon.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, "A year ago, on August 23, 2023, our Chandrayaan-III became the first space mission to land on the south side of the Moon. PM Modi announced that every year this day would be celebrated as National Space Day. The world never expected that we would be able to achieve this feat because our space journey is only 55 years long. Today, ISRO within half a century became the first to have landed on the south side of the Moon, before anyone else."
He further said that National Space Day is also a day of introspection, reflection and also to create roadmap for the future.
He said, "This is a day to reflect how we covered such a long journey in a short time and where do we go from here. This is the showcase of the talent and capability of our scientists. The biggest credit goes to PM Modi. PM Modi gave permission for public-private participation and within 3 to 4 years today, there are 300 start-ups in space. In just 8 months there was an investment from April 1 to Dec 31, 2023. there was an investment of more than 1000 crores."
He further said that next year would be crucial for the Gaganyaan project.
"Till 2035 there would be a Indian space station if everything goes well, which was announced by PM Modi. Till 2040, India aims to land on the moon. India has proved how space technology can be used in health, agriculture, climate, disaster management, smart cities, highway construction, or security of railway lines," he added.
President Droupadi Murmu, along with Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh and ISRO Chairman S Somanath attended an exhibition to showcase space technologies and achievements at Bharat Mandapam on the occasion of the maiden National Space Day on Friday.
President Droupadi Murmu distributed prizes to the winners of ISRO's Robotics Challenge and Bharatiya Antariksh Hackathon on the occasion.
ISRO Chairman S Somanath said, "Last year we successfully launched the Chandrayaan-3 mission. We never imagined the impact that is going to create out of this accomplishment. And it is when the Prime Minister of India visited us in the control centre after a few days, and he declared 23rd August as National Space Day and declared the landing site i.e. Chandrayaan-3 as Shiva Shakti point..."
India is celebrating its first-ever National Space Day on Friday on the theme "Touching Lives While Touching the Moon: India's Space Saga".
On August 23, 2023, India achieved a historic milestone when the Chandrayaan-3 lander completed a soft landing on the moon. This remarkable accomplishment made India the 4th country to accomplish this feat and the 1st to land on the lunar South Pole. In recognition of this achievement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared August 23 as National Space Day.