Bhubaneswar: National Space Day was celebrated with great enthusiasm today at the Odisha Space Research Application Centre (ORSAC). The event, which marked the nation’s pride in its recent space achievements, was graced by Odisha’s Minister for Science & Technology, Krushna Chandra Patra. Joining as the Guest of Honour, Principal Secretary to the Science and Technology Department, Chithra Arumugam, spoke on this year’s theme, “Touching Lives while Touching the Moon: India’s Space Saga.”
The Government of India recently declared August 23rd as “National Space Day” to commemorate the success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, which achieved a historic soft landing on the Moon’s South Pole. This achievement places India among an elite group of spacefaring nations and marks it as the first to land on the lunar South Pole. The celebration aims to inspire the younger generation to explore the fields of space science and technology.
The ORSAC event was a part of the national celebrations, featuring notable figures from the space science community. Several dignitaries attended the event, and school children from various government schools in Bhubaneswar participated in a quiz competition on space science. The winners were presented with prizes by Minister Patra.
The event began with a welcome address by Rashmita Panda, Chief Executive of ORSAC, followed by an engaging speech from the Chief Speaker, Dr. Debadatta Swain, Associate Professor at IIT Bhubaneswar, who emphasized the importance of National Space Day in fostering scientific curiosity among students.
Minister Krushna Chandra Patra also planted a sapling on the ORSAC premises to mark the occasion and felicitated students from VSSUT, Burla, for their space science exhibits. In closing, prizes were distributed to students who excelled in the Space Science Quiz competition.