"India's Successful Moon Mission Is Not India's Alone": PM Modi's Message To World

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today congratulated India and the whole world after lander Vikram of the Chanrayaan-3 mission successfully landed near the Moon's South Pole.

India is the first nation to land a craft near the Moon's South Pole, where scientists believe there are high chances of finding a dense concentration of water, which was first detected by the previous Chandrayaan-2 mission.

"Our approach of one Earth, one family, one future is resonating across the globe. This human-centric approach has been welcomed universally. Our Moon mission is also based on the human-centric approach, which is why the success belongs to all of  humanity. It will help Moon missions by the other countries in future," PM Modi said on a video feed from South Africa, where he has gone on an official visit.

PM's Modi's address came seconds after the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) confirmed the successful touchdown of the lander Vikram. The rover Pragyan will roll out from the lander craft after over three hours.

This is because during landing, the craft had kicked up a lot of fine Moon dust, which won't settle down due to the Moon's weak gravity but will drift away on its own momentum.

"India reached the uncharted lunar South Pole because of our scientists' hard work and talent. Stories, myths and anecdotes will change for the new generation. Earlier it was said - Chanda mama bahut dur hai (the Moon is very far away), now children will say Chanda mama bas ek tour hai (the Moon is just a tour away)," PM Modi said.

Following the successful landing, India could rename the South Pole of the moon "Chandra Gangotri" - inspired by the country's Antarctica mission Dakshin Gangotri, said senior journalist Pallava Bagla.