Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla's Axiom Space Mission to the International Space Station (ISS) has been further postponed to June 10.
The announcement was made during a virtual press conference with the Axiom-4 mission crew members. Shukla, along with three others, was initially scheduled to travel to space on May 29, later, it was rescheduled to June 8.
Shukla is the second Indian to travel to space four decades after Rakesh Sharma's spaceflight onboard Russia's Soyuz spacecraft in 1984.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to interact with the Axiom-4 crew during their 14-day stay at the space station.
The other crew members include Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland and Tibor Kapu from Hungary.
The astronauts are planning to spend up to 14 days abroad in the orbiting laboratory, conducting outreach, conducting science and commercial activities.
The Ax-4 astronauts will perform around 60 scientific studies and activities representing 31 countries during their 14-day stay at the ISS.
Under a collaboration between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Shukla will be conducting exclusive food and nutrition-related experiments.
Shukla will also be participating in the five joint studies planned by NASA for its human research programme. A total set of seven experiments have been lined up for Shukla.
It has drawn up plans to focus on India-centric food for carrying out experiments on the ISS, including sprouting methi (Fenugreek) and moong (green gram) in microgravity conditions.
"For the people of India: This mission is a milestone and I request India to pray for the success of the mission," said Shukla.