The Union cabinet on Tuesday announced August 23 as ‘National Space Day’, marking the successful landing of Chandrayaan 3 on the moon’s south pole.
“The Cabinet lauds the historic success of ISRO scientists who worked for the Chandrayaan-3 mission. It is a symbol of our strength on global stage. It (Cabinet) also welcomes the move to celebrate August 23 as ‘National Science Day”, Union minister Anurag Thakur said at the briefing held after the Cabinet meet.
“The Cabinet takes pride in the fact that our women scientists contributed in the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 mission. This will inspire the next generations of women scientists. The Cabinet also thanks PM Modi for his vision and leadership towards Indian Space Programme”, the minister added.
During his visit to the ISRO command centre in Bengaluru on August 26, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made the announcement.
“In today’s era, the country which paces ahead in the field of science and technology will be charting history…To encourage our younger generation to get involved in the field of science and technology and space, we have decided that August 23, the day when our Chandrayaan-3 lander touched the moon, will be celebrated as National Space Day,” the prime minister had said.
The PM had met and congratulated ISRO scientists, lauding the people involved with the Chandrayaan 3’s successful landing on the lunar surface. He interacted with ISRO scientists at the Isro Telemetry Tracking and Command Network Mission Control Complex (ISTRAC).
“The place where Chandrayaan-2 left its footprint on the Lunar surface in 2019 will be known as ‘Tiranga Point. You took ‘Make in India’ to the moon”, the prime minister had said.
PM Modi had also flown down to Bengaluru on the night of September 6, 2019 to watch the planned touch down of Chandrayaan-2 mission’s ‘Vikram’ lander. But in the early hours of September seven, barely minutes before it was slated to land, ISRO lost contact with the craft, just 2.1 kms above the lunar surface.
