Chandrayaan-3 success result of Jawaharlal Nehru's early efforts: Congress; Rahul cites 'decades of tremendous ingenuity'

The party's reaction came shortly after India joined an elite group of three nations to send a spacecraft to the moon as Chandrayaan-3 landed a rover on the lunar surface to explore the uncharted territories near the south pole.

New Delhi: Congress on Wednesday said that Chandrayaan-3's historic successful soft-landing on the Moon was a result of India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru's "early efforts".

The party's reaction came shortly after India joined an elite group of three nations to send a spacecraft to the moon as Chandrayaan-3 landed a rover on the lunar surface to explore the uncharted territories near the south pole. India's third lunar mission - Chandrayaan-3 - on Wednesday landed near the South Pole of the moon, a place where no spacecraft has travelled so far.

"India's voyage to the moon and beyond is a tale of pride, determination & vision. It was independent India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, whose scientific outlook and vision laid the foundation of Indian space research. Today, the success of Chandrayaan-III is a result of his early efforts," the Congress wrote on Site X (formerly Twitter).

The Congress said it was a collective success of every Indian and ISRO's achievement reflects a saga of continuity and is truly fantastic. Party president Mallikarjun Kharge said an elated nation with 140 crore aspirations today witnessed yet another achievement in its six-decade-long space programme and the entire world is looking up to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) which is a matter of special pride for all Indians.

"We are deeply indebted to the remarkable hard work, unparalleled ingenuity and unflinching dedication of our scientists, space engineers, researchers and everyone involved in making this mission a triumph for India," Kharge said. Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi said, "Congratulations to Team ISRO for today's pioneering feat."

"Chandrayaan3's soft landing on the uncharted lunar South Pole is the result of decades of tremendous ingenuity and hard work by our scientific community," Gandhi said. He said since 1962, India's space program has continued to scale new heights and inspire generations of young dreamers. Congress general secretary, communications, Jairam Ramesh said ISRO's achievement reflects a saga of continuity and is truly fantastic.

"ISRO's accomplishments have always been anchored in self-reliance. They reflect phenomenal teamwork, partnerships and enterprise. The entire world is looking up to ISRO today, acknowledging its achievements, and for us Indians, it is a matter of special pride," Ramesh said in a video message.