‘Moment of pride’

Kolkata: Hailing the safe return of Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla from space, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday called it a matter of national pride.

Shukla, a 39-year-old Indian Air Force officer and test pilot, on Tuesday returned to the Earth after an 18-day stay at the International Space Station.

“Welcome home, Shubhanshu Shukla! We are really happy to see that you are back. It is a matter of pride for us to see what you have done. Congratulations to you and your team members, and best wishes to your family,” Banerjee posted on X.

Shukla completed his maiden space voyage as part of the Axiom-4 mission, a commercial spaceflight jointly supported by ISRO and NASA, and operated by Texas-based Axiom Space.

The Dragon spacecraft splashed down off the San Diego coast in southern California at 3:01 pm IST.