Bengaluru | Jagran News Desk: ISRO chief K Sivan on Saturday got emotional after he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the ISRO headquarters in Bengaluru hours after the space agency lost contact with Chandrayaan 2 lander.
PM Modi hugged an emotional, teary-eyed ISRO chief K Sivan as he made his way out of the ISRO headquarters in Bengaluru.
#WATCH PM Narendra Modi hugged and consoled ISRO Chief K Sivan after he(Sivan) broke down. #Chandrayaan2 pic.twitter.com/R1d0C4LjAh
— ANI (@ANI) September 7, 2019
Addressing the scientists' hours after ISRO announced that it had lost communication with the lander, he also said that the country's determination to land on the moon has become even stronger.
He also lauded the scientists for their exemplary work and courage and asked them to not to lose hope.
“Friends I could feel what you were going through few hours back, your eyes were conveying a lot. You live for India's honour, I salute you. I understand what you went through last night. You work for India's pride,” said PM Modi.
He further said that there is no failure in science and the difficulties faced today will make ISRO better for the future.
“Every difficulty makes us learn something new and defines are a future success. There's no failure in science, there are only experiments,” said PM Modi.
The communication with Vikram lander was lost moments before its planned landing on the south pole region of the Moon. ISRO chairman K Sivan announced that communication with the lander was lost at 2.1 km from the lunar surface.
If the lander had pulled off the historic touchdown, the country could have joined the US, Russia and China in soft landing on the lunar surface.
India could have also been the first to lower its lander on the hitherto unexplored south polar region of the moon.