Modi set to hail India’s growing clout at G20 after successful lunar mission

India, the host of next month’s G20 summit, joins the US, the Soviet Union and China as only the fourth country to achieve a successful moon landing
India is looking to open the space sector to foreign investment as it eyes a five-fold increase in its share of the global launch market in the next decade

India

Biman Mukherji

Published: 6:30pm, 24 Aug 2023

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India’s moon rover exited the spacecraft Chandrayaan-3 on Thursday morning, hours after completing a historic landing on the unexplored south pole – a feat that was applauded worldwide and signalled a technological triumph for the world’s most populous nation.

“The Ch-3 Rover ramped down from the Lander and India took a walk on the moon!” the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said exultantly, after the spacecraft shook off the dust from its landing on the highly-cratered side that holds the promise of water.

If the rover finds ice sheets on the moon’s surface, it could open up the possibility for humans to find a new habitation on it because it can provide fuel, oxygen and drinking water for future missions.

Chandrayaan-3 lifts off from Sriharikota, India. India’s previous Chandrayan mission successfully deployed an orbiter but its lander crashed. Photo: AP

After a failed attempt to land on the moon in 2019, India joined the United States, the Soviet Union and China as only the fourth country to achieve this milestone.

No other country, however, has been able to land a spacecraft on the moon’s treacherous dark side, the fag end of a journey that has been described as 20 minutes of terror because of the chances of crashing on the boulder-strewn surface.

India’s previous Chandrayan mission, which means “moon vehicle” in Hindi and Sanskrit, successfully deployed an orbiter but its lander crashed. Earlier this month, Russia’s Luna-25 spacecraft failed after developing a snag during the pre-landing orbit.

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India makes historic landing on the lunar south pole, becoming the 4th country to land on the moon

Russian President Vladimir Putin joined hundreds of other dignitaries worldwide to congratulate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Elon Musk, who founded SpaceX with the goal of reducing space transport costs and to colonise Mars, too praised the country’s achievement.

“Being a space lover, it’s incredible to see India’s #Chandrayaan3 space probe successfully landed on the Moon. India is a cool country with great tech talent & innovators,” Musk posted on X, the social media firm formerly known as Twitter, which he now owns.

Modi, who joined a live telecast from the sidelines of the Brics meeting in South Africa, lauded the country’s scientists and said the “success belongs to all of humanity” because it has opened new frontiers in space.

“We can all aspire for the moon and beyond,” he said, beaming.

Indian students in Chennai form a circle around a model of the Indian Space Research Organisation’s mission of Chandrayaan-3’s first attempt to land on the moon. Photo: EPA-EFE

Nearly 7 million people viewed the YouTube live stream alone, as millions across the globe tuned in to watch the landing on Wednesday, and schools in India organised live screens. The success sparked jubilation across the nation and people offered prayers of thanks at places of worship.

“This moment signifies new energy, new belief, and new consciousness in India. This moment is the call of India’s ascending destiny,” said Modi, whose efforts to revitalise the country’s global standing has resonated with Indians

India will host next month’s G20 summit, and Modi is expected to use the event to spotlight the country’s growing geopolitical clout.

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Booster for development

India has privatised space launches and is looking to open the sector to foreign investment as it targets a five-fold increase in its share of the global launch market within the next decade by highlighting its cost competitiveness.

The ISRO had a budget of around just US$74 million for the Chandrayaan-3 Mission, compared to Nasa’s own estimates of US$93 billion on its Artemis moon programme through 2025.

China made the first ever soft landing on the far side of the moon in 2019 and has more missions planned. Space research firm Euroconsult estimates China spent US$12 billion on its space programme in 2022.

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The successful moon landing is also expected to bolster the nation’s hopes to emerge as a global manufacturing hub as Western nations look to diversify supply chains. Indian trade and business joined in celebrating the moon milestone.

“Over the years, they [the ISRO] have given us many occasions to celebrate through the successes of the Indian space programme. But this stands out in particular,” said Subhrakant Panda, president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

Dilip Chenoy, chairman of Bharat Web3 Association said the achievement has “united the nation with a sense of pride and achievement”, while Deepak Sood, secretary general of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India signified the country’s resolve to “cross all barriers” based “on a solid foundation of science, technology and innovation”.

Satya Gupta, a semiconductor industry veteran behind a new nonprofit group promoting the revitalisation of the domestic electronics sector, said the Chandrayaan-3 mission would have a positive impact in promoting indigenous innovation.

A view of the moon as viewed by the Chandrayaan-3 lander on August 5. Photo: Reuters

Earlier in June, India became a signatory to the Artemis Accords, a US-led international partnership for a new era of space exploration, one of the goals of which is to increase forays to the lunar surface.

The head of Indian Space Research Organisation, S Somanath, told a packed news conference late on Wednesday that the country had charted plans for a mission to orbit the sun, and another one to Venus, apart from a human space flight.

Somnath said his team of scientists had to virtually start from scratch following the failure of the previous moon mission. “We went through a lot of pain and agony. Most people who were associated with Chandrayaan-2 are part of Chandrayaan-3,” he said.

But the process to rebuild has paid off in Chandrayaan-3, he added. “It’s a made-in-India craft, and the capability that we have today is as good as anybody else.”

Additional reporting by Reuters