The Gaganyatris — astronauts selected for India’s maiden human spaceflight programme — attended the National Space Day celebrations at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Saturday. Group Captains Shubhanshu Shukla, Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Ajit Krishnan, and Angad Pratap, all Indian Air Force test pilots, joined delegates for this year’s event, themed “Aryabhatta to Gaganyaan: Ancient Wisdom to Infinite Possibilities.”
Speaking at the event, astronaut and Group Captain Shukla lauded the wave and excitement he witnessed among the Indian youth for India’s space ambitions, attributing it to the celebration of the National Space Day and participation from across the country.
“Two years ago, we didn’t have this celebration; we started it last year, and within two years, we have created immense excitement. We are going to have big missions in the days to come, including Gaganyan and the Bharatiya Antariksh Station… These require resources from the entire nation, including children, institutions, and schools,” he said.
Acknowledging decades of dedication by India’s scientific community — especially ISRO — in elevating the country’s space programme to a level where a human spaceflight mission is within reach, Group Captain Pratap said, “The human spaceflight programme is not a single mission but many missions in one — and the only challenge standing between our nation and becoming a true space superpower.”
To commemorate the safe landing of Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander and the deployment of the Pragyan rover on the Moon’s South Pole on August 23, 2023 — a feat no other nation has achieved — the Government of India declared August 23 to be observed each year as National Space Day.