Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Dr V Narayanan, said that the organisation is working on a mission to take an Indian to the Moon and bring him back safely. He also said that India will have its own space station by 2035.

He was at Lovely Professional University near Jalandhar as one of the key speakers at the 8th Chhatra Sansad. Dr Narayanan said that Prime Minister, Sh Narendra Modi, has given the guidelines to work on the mission of taking an Indian to the Moon and bringing him back safely, and the ISRO will accomplish this task by 2040. He also spoke about the humble but inspiring journey of the Indian Space Programme, which has many firsts to its credit now, including being the only space organisation to successfully complete a Mars orbit mission in its first attempt and that too by using a single rocket.

On the safe return of NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore after their epic nine-month odyssey in space, Dr Narayanan said he did not sleep as he was watching the entire mission. We have to learn from others for the success of our own missions.

He encouraged the students to work with a single-minded devotion to excel in any chosen field to contribute to making the nation a developed country.