Chandrayaan-2 : Click Selfies, I Will Retweet, Says ‘Extremely Excited’ PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the country is enthusiastically waiting for the Chandrayaan-2’s ‘Vikram’ module’s historic soft-landing on the Moon. Taking to Twitter PM Modi wrote: “The moment 130 crore Indians were enthusiastically waiting for is here!  In a few hours from now, the final descent of Chandrayaan - 2 will take place on the Lunar South Pole.  India, and the rest of the world will yet again see the exemplary prowess of our space scientists (sic).”

“I am extremely excited to be at the ISRO Centre in Bengaluru to witness the extraordinary moment in the history of India’s space programme. Youngsters from different states will also be present to watch those special moments! There would also be youngsters from Bhutan. The youngsters with whom I will watch the special moments from the ISRO Centre in Bengaluru are those bright minds who won the ISRO Space Quiz on MyGov. The large-scale participation in this Quiz showcases the interest of the youth in science and space. This is a great sign! (sic),” PM Modi added.

Urging people to watch the rare event, PM Modi said, “ I urge you all to watch the special moments of Chandrayaan - 2 descending on to the Lunar South Pole! Do share your photos on social media. I will re-tweet some of them too.”

Around 70 students are busy packing their bags for Bengaluru to watch Chandrayaan-2's scheduled soft-landing on the moon with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Indian Space Research Organization headquarters on Saturday. These students have been selected based on marks obtained in an online space quiz contest conducted by ISRO in coordination with MyGov.in from August 10 to 25.

Two top scorers from each state and Union Territory have been invited by the space agency to watch the landing of Chandrayaan-2's Vikram module on the Moon from ISRO's centre in Bengaluru.

"...about 70 students in total. They will be watching the landing live along with Prime Minister," a senior ISRO official told news agency PTI.

The quiz was launched to increase awareness about its space programmes. The criteria for selecting successful winners was "maximum correct answers in the shortest time."

The duration of the quiz was 10 minutes (600 Seconds) during which a maximum of 20 questions could be answered, ISRO had said.

"Two top-scoring students (from class 8-10 only) from each state and union territory will be invited to ISRO, Bengaluru Centre to watch the landing of Chandrayaan 2 on the Moon, live along with the Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi," terms and conditions of the quiz on the MyGov.in read.

HIGHLIGHTS

• PM Modi said the country is enthusiastically waiting for Chandrayaan-2’s ‘Vikram’ module’s historic soft-landing.
• The quiz was launched to increase awareness about its space programmes.
• There would also be youngsters from Bhutan to watch the event.