Astronaut and Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla said on Monday (August 25, 2025) that India is moving fast in space exploration and the day is not far when the world will talk about ‘ISRO’ instead of ‘NASA’, it is just a matter of time.

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the US ‘National Aeronautics and Space Administration’ (NASA) are both working in the space sector. At a civil reception ceremony held in his honor in Lucknow after the success of the ‘Axiom-4’ mission and its safe return from the International Space Station (ISS), Shukla said, “I have felt incredible enthusiasm among the people about our space achievements since returning to India.”

‘The world will talk about ISRO instead of NASA’

He said that it has been two years since celebrating National Space Day, yet there is tremendous enthusiasm about it. As Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said, the day is not far when people will talk about ISRO instead of NASA. I believe that this is not a dream, but a reality, which is waiting to come true.

Shukla, who was extremely impressed by this warm reception, smiled and said, ‘I must have taken about 2,000 selfies since reaching Lucknow at around seven thirty in the morning. The famous saying of ‘Smile that you are in Lucknow’, today really came alive for me.

Enthusiasm doubled by reaching hometown Lucknow

The honor ceremony took place at the official residence of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and included Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, family members of BJP state president Bhupendra Chaudhary and Shukla’s family members, including his wife Kamna, mother Asha and father Shambhu Shukla.

Talking about his journey, Shukla said that the enthusiasm he saw in Delhi when he came to India reached his hometown Lucknow and became ‘double’. He said, ‘It was very exciting for me to come home with such a warm reception. I am thankful to my heart for love and pride shown by the people.

Team made 60 scientific experiments in space

Shukla’s 18 -day mission included stopping at ISS before landing in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego. He said that his team conducted 60 scientific experiments in space, out of which seven were designed by Indian scientists.

He said that the most glorious moment was to do the experiments fixed by our scientists. Shukla said that for the first time he got an opportunity to do research related to micro-misconduct. He said, “The real achievements are not only figures, but the gates that this mission has opened for future Indian research in space is those.”

Young generation desire to enter space

Shukla told that he interacted with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the mission and spoke to the children on three occasions. He said, ‘Every time, the children asked how they can become astronauts. One of the biggest achievements of this mission is that now the younger generation wishes to go into space and they are confident that they can achieve it. ISRO President V. Narayanan was also present at the honor ceremony.

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