Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday met Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who recently became the first Indian astronaut to travel to the International Space Station (ISS). Shukla, part of the Axiom-4 commercial mission from June 25 to July 15, met the Prime Minister at his Lok Kalyan Marg residence. Wearing an ISRO astronaut's jacket, Shukla was welcomed by Modi with a warm hug, and the two walked together with the Prime Minister's arm on the astronaut's shoulder.
Gifts for PM Modi
During the meeting, Shukla gifted the Prime Minister the Axiom-4 mission patch and an Indian tricolour that had traveled to the ISS with him. This same flag was seen in the background when Shukla interacted with Modi via video call from space on June 29. The Lucknow-born astronaut also showed the Prime Minister pictures he had taken from the ISS on a tablet computer.
"Had a great interaction with Shubhanshu Shukla," Modi said in a post on X. "We discussed a wide range of subjects including his experiences in space, progress in science & technology as well as India's ambitious Gaganyaan mission. India is proud of his feat".
In his own post on X, Shukla shared a picture of himself presenting a framed national tricolour to the Prime Minister. "Met with the Hon PM today," he wrote. "Last time I spoke to him virtually was from Orbit with this same flag in the background on the @iss. I cannot describe how proud I felt that day (interaction from Orbit) representing Bharat and today when I was speaking to the PM @narendramodi. Like I said this is just the first step in Bharat's journey of human spaceflight".
Axiom-4 Mission
Along with three other astronauts, Peggy Whitson (US), Sławosz Uznanski-Wiśniewski (Poland), and Tibor Kapu (Hungary), Shukla conducted over 60 experiments and 20 outreach sessions during the 20-day Axiom-4 mission. He lifted off from Florida on June 25, docked at the ISS on June 26, and returned to Earth on July 15.
The Prime Minister had previously interacted with Shukla on June 29, urging him to document his learning, training, and stay at the International Space Station to help with India's future missions, including Gaganyaan. Shukla, who returned to India on Sunday, had told a press interaction on August 1 that he had fulfilled this request.
"I remember very well the homework given to me by the prime minister. And I completed it very well," Shukla said. "I am very excited to come back and share it with you all. I am confident that all that knowledge is going to prove extremely useful and crucial for us, for our own Gaganyaan mission".
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