RSS extends best wishes for Chandrayaan-3's success; says feat crucial for India

New Delhi: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Wednesday wished for a successful landing of Chandrayaan-3's lunar module on moon's surface, saying it is "very important" for the country.  The Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) ambitious third moon mission Chandrayaan-3's Lander Module (LM) is all set to land on the lunar surface this evening, as India eyes to become the first country to reach the uncharted south pole of earth's only natural satellite.

The LM comprising the lander (Vikram) and the rover (Pragyan) is scheduled to make a touch down near the south polar region of the moon at 6:04 pm on Wednesday.

"India's Chandrayaan-3 mission is very important for the country. It will increase India's pride in the world. I am fully confident of its success," RSS media relations and publicity head Sunil Ambekar said.

He also acknowledged the contributions of the Indian scientists involved in the mission and said a successful landing of the moon mission will raise India's stature in the world.

"For this, I congratulate all the scientists and extend my best wishes," Ambekar added.

If the Chandrayaan-3 mission succeeds in making a touchdown on moon and in landing a robotic lunar rover in ISRO's second attempt in four years, India will become the fourth country to master the technology of soft-landing on the lunar surface after the US, China and the erstwhile Soviet Union.

Chandrayaan-3 is a follow-on mission to Chandrayaan-2 and its objectives are to demonstrate safe and soft-landing on the lunar surface, roving on the moon, and to conduct in-situ scientific experiments.

The Rs 600 crore Chandrayaan-3 mission was launched on July 14 on board Launch Vehicle Mark-III (LVM-3) rocket, for a 41-day voyage to reach near the lunar south pole. The soft-landing is being attempted days after Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft crashed into the moon after spinning out of control.

After the second and final deboosting operation on August 20, the LM is placed in a 25 km x 134 km orbit around the moon.

The module would undergo internal checks and await the sunrise at the designated landing site, ISRO has said, the powered descent -- to achieve soft-landing on the moon's surface -- is expected to be initiated at around 5:45 pm on Wednesday.