Modi: Indian astronauts will be on Moon; Mars on radar

PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA Modi said on Wednesday that India was marching ahead with renewed confidence in the field of space exploration and its astronauts' footprints will be on the Moon.

- PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Mars and Venus were also on the country's radar for exploration missions, he stressed in a pre-recorded message for the Global Space Exploration Conference (GLEX-2025) here.

Modi said for India, space was about exploration as well as empowerment, and listed out plans to set up the Bharatiya Antariksh Station by 2035 and land an Indian astronaut on the Moon by 2040.

"India's space journey is not about racing others. It is about reaching higher together. Together, we share a common goal to explore space for the good of humanity," he said in the video message that was recorded on Tuesday.

He said India has launched a satellite for the South Asian nations and the G20 satellite, announced during its presidency of the grouping, will be a gift to the Global South.