India Names Vikram Lander Touchdown Point in Moon as “Shiv Shakti Point,” To Celebrate August 23 as “National Space Day”
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Aug 26: India has decided to name the point in moon where the “Vikram” lander of the Chandrayaan-3 mission made the soft-landing as “Shiv Shakti Point,” the place where the Chandrayaa-2 had crash landed in 2019 and left its footprints as “Tiranga Point,” and celebrate August 23, the day when Vikram made the flawless landing on moon as the “National Space Day” every year.
The series of announcements were made by the prime minister Narendra Modi while addressing the scientists at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in Bengaluru which he visited on Saturday to congratulate the architects of the successful lunar mission that has catapulted India as one of the advanced scientific nations.
Addressing the scientists at the ISRO Telemetry Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) Modi said: “It is a convention to name the spot of the touchdown on the moon. And India too has now decided to name the point where Vikram lander touched down. That point will now be known as ‘Shiv Shakti Point. In Shiv, there is resolution for the welfare of humanity and Shakti gives us strength to fulfil those resolutions.”
The ‘Shakti’ in the name ‘Shiv Shakti’ comes from the hard work, inspiration and empowerment of the women scientists,” he added. This Shiv Shakti point of the moon also gives a sense of connection with Himalaya to Kanyakumari.”
He said “India has decided to also name the point where Chandrayaan-2’s Vikram lander crash-landed. India had decided not to name that point at that time as it did not feel right. But today, when the Chandrayaan-3 mission successfully landed on the Moon, the moment is right to dedicate a name to the point where Chandrayaan-2 left its mark. Since we now have “Har Ghar Tiranga” and the Tiranga is even there on the Moon, it is only apt to name the point ‘Tiranga Point’ – India’s first contact with the surface of the Moon,” Modi announced.
“National Space Day will celebrate the spirit of Science, Technology and Innovation, and inspire us for an eternity,” Modi said. He added that following the success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission the whole world recognises India’s scientific spirit, technology and temperament.
“India is on the Moon, We have our national pride placed on the Moon. This is today’s India that is fearless and relentless. This is an India that thinks new and in a novel way, the one that goes to the dark zone and spreads light in the world. This India will provide solutions to the big problems of the world in the 21st Century,” he added. He also acknowledged the major role played by women scientists in the success of Chandrayaan-3 mission.
He said that India has become the fifth-largest economy in the world and it is now among the first-world countries. “In the journey from third row to first row, institutions like our ISRO have played a huge role,” he said.
Modi also asked ISRO to organise national hackathons on space technology in governance in collaboration with various departments of the Centre and the State governments, and called upon students across the country to take part in a huge quiz competition on the Chandrayaan mission organised by MyGov from September 1.
He urged the younger generation of the country to come forward to scientifically prove the astronomical formulas in the scriptures of India. “It is also important for our heritage and also important for science. In a way, this is a double responsibility for the students at schools, colleges and universities today. The treasure of scientific knowledge that India has been buried, hidden during the long period of slavery. In this Azadi ka Amrit Kaal, we have to explore this treasure too, do research on it and also tell the world about it,” Modi said.
The PM was received at ISTRAC by ISRO chief S Somanath and other scientists. The PM said, “What you all have achieved is one of the most inspiring moments of this era. After this feat, the entire world has understood India’s mettle in the field of science and technology.”
India’s Chandrayaan-3 lander Vikram successfully touched down on the lunar surface on Wednesday. The lander is carrying six scientific payloads, including the rover Pragyan which will collect data over 14 days on Earth’s nearest celestial neighbour.
