New Delhi, Aug 17 : Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla returned to India early Sunday to a rousing welcome by a large number of people waving the tricolour and beating drums at the airport here to celebrate his historic visit to the International Space Station (ISS).
Shukla, who became the second Indian to undertake a spaceflight as part of the Axiom-4 mission, and his back-up astronaut-designate Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair were welcomed at the airport by Union Minister Jitendra Singh, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, and ISRO Chairman V Narayanan.
“Thank you sir. Surely feels good to be back home,” Shukla posted on X in response to Singh’s post welcoming after receiving him at the airport.
Shukla’s wife Kamna and son Kiash were also present at the airport to welcome him home after a nearly one-year stay in the US training for the space flight, which finally took place from June 25 to July 15.
A large crowd waving the national tri-colour had gathered at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here to welcome Shukla to the sound of drumbeats.
The government has proposed a special discussion in the Lok Sabha on Monday on the subject ‘India’s first astronaut aboard the International Space Station — Critical role of the space programme for Viksit Bharat by 2047 — to mark Shukla’s return to India.
Shukla is expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday and travel to his hometown, Lucknow. He is also expected to return to the capital to participate in the National Space Day celebrations on August 22-23.
“India’s space glory touches Indian soil… as the iconic son of Mother India, #Gaganyatri Shubhanshu Shukla, lands in Delhi in the early hours of this morning. Accompanying him, another equally accomplished Group Captain Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair, one of the astronauts selected for India’s first human mission Gaganyaan, who was India’s designated backup for the mission to the International Space Station #ISS,” Singh said in a post on X.
Shukla was part of the Axiom-4 private space mission that lifted off from Florida on June 25 and docked at the International Space Station on June 26. He returned to Earth on 15 July.
Along with three other astronauts – Peggy Whitson (US), Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski (Poland), and Tibor Kapu (Hungary) – Shukla conducted over 60 experiments and 20 outreach sessions during the 18-day mission
Earlier on Saturday, Shukla had posted a smiling photograph of himself sitting in an aeroplane on Instagram, saying he was filled with mixed emotions as he left the US and looked forward to returning to India to share his experiences with everyone back home.
“As I sit on the plane to come back to India, I have a mix of emotions running through my heart. I feel sad leaving a fantastic group of people behind who were my friends and family for the past year during this mission. I am also excited about meeting all my friends, family, and everyone in the country for the first time post-mission. I guess this is what life is – everything all at once,” Shukla said in the post.
“Having received incredible love and support from everyone during and after the mission, I can’t wait to come back to India to share my experiences with all of you. Goodbyes are hard, but we need to keep moving in life. As my commander Peggy Whitson fondly says, ‘The only constant in spaceflight is change.’ I believe that applies to life as well,” he added.
Shukla also wrote, “I guess at the end of the day – ‘Yun hi chala chal rahi – jeevan gaadi hai samay pahiya’,” recalling the song from the Bollywood movie Swades, which was on his playlist just before he embarked on the Axiom-4 mission to the ISS on June 25 from the US.
Shukla and his backup astronaut Nair participated in the Independence Day celebrations at the Indian Consulate in Houston on Friday.
Addressing the 79th Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort, Prime Minister Modi on Friday said India was developing its own space station and noted that Group Captain Shukla had returned from a space mission.
“Our Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla has returned from the space station. In the coming days, he is returning to India,” Modi had said. (PTI)
