MH-MODI-ISRO

Isro will realise national dream:Modi on Chandrayaan-2 setback
    Mumbai, Sep 7 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Saturday said the Isro scientists will be undeterred by the
setback on the Chandrayaan-2 mission, and asserted the nation
will achieve its goal of reaching the moon.
    Modi was speaking hours after the Vikram lander of the
Chandrayaan-2 mission lost communication contact with the
ground centre in the wee hours of Saturday in Bengaluru, a
moment he personally witnessed.
    He said the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro)
scientists have a very strong spirit of working and will not
rest till the objective is met.
    "The dream of reaching the moon will be accomplished
Isro and those working with it won't stop, get tired or sit
down," Modi said, speaking at an event in the financial
capital later in the day.
    Modi said the scientists are not the naysayers who shy
away from challenges or chicken out at the first sight of
difficulty. They pursue their goals hard and keep trying till
the objective is met.
    The prime minister said the orbiter is still hovering
the moon and termed it as a historic achievement in itself.
    Addressing a public gathering here, he invoked the
famous 'Mumbai Spirit' that helps the megapolis face any
setbacks, and said the Isro scientists have a similar spirit.
    Earlier in the day, Modi had addressed scientists at
the Isro control centre in Bengaluru, and told them not to get
disheartened by the hurdles in the moon mission and asserted
that there will be a "new dawn and a better tomorrow".
    "We came very close but we need to cover more ground
in the times to come. Learnings from today will make us
stronger and better. The nation is proud of our space
programme and our scientists. The best is yet to come in our
space programme. There are new frontiers to discover and new
places to go. The whole nation is with you," Modi told the
crestfallen scientists.
    Isro's plan to soft land the Vikram module on the
south pole of the lunar surface-the first nation ever to make
such an attempt--did not go as per script in the early hours
of Saturday, with the lander losing communication with ground
stations during its final descent.
    Modi delivered a message of optimism, solidarity and
hope to the scientists in an address, which was broadcast
live, hours after the Isro announced that it had lost
communication with the lander. PTI PSK AA
BEN BEN

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from a PTI feed.)