India’s first human space mission is gathering pace. ISRO successfully completed the second Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-02) at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, marking a crucial milestone in the Gaganyaan programme. Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh congratulated ISRO and called it a significant step towards India’s first crewed spaceflight.
India’s maiden human space mission is now proposed for launch in 2027, for which the government has allocated a budget of approximately Rs 10,000 crore. ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan confirmed that three uncrewed missions will be carried out before the final human spaceflight.
On April 4, India’s four selected astronauts began high-altitude tests in Ladakh under Mission Mitra, aimed at assessing human capability under extreme conditions. The mission includes Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and P. Balakrishnan Nair, among others. The programme is being carried out with a multidisciplinary team of scientists, engineers, and medical experts.
Gaganyaan is considered a historic milestone in India’s space journey. The mission will place India among an elite group of nations capable of human spaceflight, demonstrating the country’s scientific and technological prowess on the global stage.
