ISRO on Sunday conducted the first parachute-assisted air drop test (IADT-01) for the Gaganyaan mission at Sriharikota. During this, the crew module was dropped from a height of 4 km through a Chinook helicopter of the Indian Air Force. The purpose of this test was to check the reliability of the parachute before the Gaganyaan mission. This test was to know whether the parachutes bringing the crew module from space are opening on time or not, whether a safe landing is achieved or not. The air drop test was a joint operation of ISRO, Indian Air Force, DRDO, Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard. Pictures of the air-drop test… What India will gain from Gaganyaan mission Gaganyaan astronauts honored in Delhi Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh attended the Indian Air Force Space Conference on Sunday. He felicitated Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and his other colleagues, Group Captain PV Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan and Group Captain Angad Pratap. Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan and Air Force Chief Air Marshal AP Singh were also present. Addressing the program, Rajnath Singh said, ‘I was told that you (Shubhanshu Shukla) are also a devotee of Bajrang Bali. You must have read Hanuman Chalisa many times there (in space). A devotee of Hanuman ji has returned after touching the heights of the sky. This is not just a victory of science. This is the resonance of faith and courage.’ Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla said, ‘I have a clip in which I tried to capture India from space. India looks really beautiful from space. Especially at night while coming from South to North over the Indian Ocean, when passing over India, it is one of the most beautiful sights seen in life.’ Shubhanshu showed a video of space and said that they were passing over India at that time. In the video, the earth is on the top. Stars are visible below. Shubhanshu said that at the end of the video, sunrise is also visible from the orbit. Shukla returned to Earth on 15 July 2025 after an 18-day stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS) under the Axiom-4 mission, becoming the first Indian to visit the ISS and the second Indian to go into space after Rakesh Sharma in 1984. He returned to India on 17 August and met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 18 August. The PM hugged him, viewed pictures from his space journey and praised him. His experience is expected to play a key role in India’s upcoming Gaganyaan mission, scheduled for 2027, aimed at sending Indian astronauts (Gaganyatris) into low Earth orbit and bringing them back safely. Discussion on Shubhanshu Shukla in Parliament Meanwhile, Parliament also held a special discussion on Shukla on 18 August. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla proposed the debate, while Union Minister Jitendra Singh criticised the opposition for not acknowledging India’s milestone. “You may be angry with the government, but how can you be angry with an astronaut? Shubhnshu is an Air Force soldier, not a political figure,” he said.
