Astronaut Shukla carries hopes, aspirations of 140 crore Indians: PM Modi

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday welcomed the successful launch of Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station and said astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla carries with him the wishes, hopes and aspirations of 140 crore Indians.

"We welcome the successful launch of the Space Mission carrying astronauts from India, Hungary, Poland and the US," Modi said in a post on X.

He said Group Captain Shukla is on the way to become the first Indian to go to International Space Station.

"He carries with him the wishes, hopes and aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians. Wish him and other astronauts all the success," Modi said.

The Axiom-4 mission, marking the return to space for India, Hungary and Poland, blasted off from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida at 12:01 pm on Wednesday.

The astronauts will spend 14 days at the International Space Station conducting over 60 science experiments.