Historic moment for humanity: Ambassador Ruchira on Chandrayaan-3 landing

NEW YORK: India's permanent representative to the United Nations (UN) Ruchira Kamboj has said Chandrayaan-3’s successful landing on the Moon is a historic moment for humanity as “we venture into uncharted territory near the moon's South Pole”.

“India's Chandrayaan-3 mission successfully landed its Vikram lander module near the South Pole of the Moon. And what is significant about this is that India has reached the South Pole of the Moon which no country in the world could reach to date with the dedication and talent of its scientists,” the permanent representative to the UN said during a press briefing at UN Headquarters in New York.

She said the Chandrayaan-3 mission “not only marks India's presence on the moon but also symbolizes the aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians. Beyond that, it's a historic moment for humanity as we venture into uncharted territory near the moon's South Pole.” Kamboj said that as per Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the mission’s success “belongs to all of us and holds promise for future scientific achievements that will benefit humanity as a whole.”

“And let me quote the Prime Minister of India himself on this. India's successful moon mission is not India's alone. This is a year in which the world is witnessing India's G-20 presidency. Our approach of one Earth, one family, one future is resonating across the globe. This human-centric approach that we represent has been welcomed universally,” Kamboj said. “Our moon mission is also based on the same human-centric approach. Therefore, this success belongs to all of humanity and it will help moon missions by other countries in the future."

“The Prime Minister went on to say that I am confident that all countries in the world including those from the Global South are capable of achieving such feats. We can all aspire for the moon and beyond,” the permanent representative to the UN added. Meanwhile, African-American actress and singer Mary Millben on Chandrayaan-3’s landing said: “Congratulations #India, @isro, Prime Minister @narendramodi, and President @rashtrapatibhvn on the #Chandrayaan3Landing! You have made history! My greeting to you today on this monumental occasion.”

Chandryaan-3 on Wednesday successfully performed a soft landing on the Moon. ISRO tweeted: "Chandrayaan-3 Mission: 'India, I reached my destination and you too!' Chandrayaan-3 has successfully soft-landed on the moon! Congratulations, India!"

As the Vikram lander carrying the Pragyaan rover in its belly touched down on the lunar surface, it marked a giant leap in India’s spacefaring journey providing a well-deserved finale to ISRO’s long years of toil. This makes India the fourth country – after the US, China, and Russia – to have successfully landed on the moon’s surface, it has earned a place in record books as the first to touchdown on the south side of Earth’s only natural satellite. Special screenings of the soft landing were organized across the country, including schools science centres, and public institutions.

ISRO made the live action available on the ISRO website, its YouTube channel, Facebook, and public broadcaster DD National TV. The spacecraft was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota on July 14. The success was met with jubilation at ISRO's headquarters, as Chief S Somanath extended his gratitude to the team and supporters for their unwavering dedication. Reflecting on the journey, he emphasized the invaluable lessons learned from previous setbacks that ultimately paved the way for this triumph. He said,

"Thank you everyone for the support...We learned a lot from our failure and today we succeeded. We are looking forward to the next 14 days from now for Chandrayaan-3." "India is on the Moon", he said as Chandrayaan-3 lander module Vikram made a safe and soft landing on the Moon