Chandigarh, December 6 - The four-day India International Science Festival began today in Sector-5, Panchkula. The first day of the program was very inspiring for students, youth and people interested in science. The children's enthusiasm increased after seeing Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhaanshu Shukla among them.
Group Captain Shubhaanshu Shukla, while sharing his space mission experience, said that the view of India from space looks unique and our country looks good from all over the world. He said that during his space journey of about 20 days, he conducted many scientific experiments and gathered important information for the Gaganyaan mission, which will add a new chapter in India's human space journey. Apart from this, he also experimented on India-centric food, medicines and new technologies.
Shubhaanshu Shukla said that India is progressing rapidly in the field of science and technology and it is a matter of pride for every Indian that the country is becoming self-reliant in this field. He appealed to the youth, especially children, to move forward in the direction of science and space exploration.
If the youth moves forward, then the country will move forward. He also said that the growing interest in science among children is encouraging and it is also the responsibility of teachers to guide the children in fulfilling their dreams of becoming astronauts.
He said that on the day in the year 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said from the Red Fort that soon our son or daughter from India will go to space. From that day onwards, continuous efforts were started in this direction.
In response to a question asked by a student whether one can become an astronaut only by being in the Air Force, he said that a new framework is being prepared under which not only the Air Force or Armed Forces but also people from other fields will be able to become astronauts.
He said that the inspiration he received from India's first spacefarer Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma gave him the courage to reach this point. He assured that in the coming time, more people from India will go to space.
He also said that India is now working seriously on the Gaganyaan mission and Mission Aditya-1 has been successfully launched to study the Sun.