While Indians are celebrating the historical achievement after the successful landing of the Vikram lander on the surface of the moon, the villagers and family members of two scientists who played important roles in the Chandrayaan-3 mission are also cock-a-hoop.
The two Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientists are Debashis Mahapatra of Berhampur in Ganjam district and Sarat Kumar Das, who is a native of Govindpur village under Kamakhyanagar sub-division in Dhenkanal district and has been living in Talcher area of Angul district.
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While describing his and other family members’ joy, Debashis’s father said, “We are very happy for the success of the Chandrayan-3. We sat through the night to keep ourselves updated about the mission. My son, who is a senior scientist working at the firing section of the PSLV has been working with the ISRO since 2006. He has been research-minded since his childhood. Among his friends, he was securing the highest marks in science. After completing his BTech from Sarang Engineering College and MTech from Jadavpur University, he successfully cracked the GATE exam. Then he was selected for the ISRO in 2006.”
Debashis’s mother said she couldn’t describe the happiness they experienced at the time when Vikram lander set its feet on the moon in words.
Similarly, Sarat Kumar Das said the moment of Vikram lander’s landing on the moon's surface would remain a special moment in his life.
“We are happy that India has become the first country to set foot successfully on the South Pole. After my MSc in physics (electronics) from NIT, Rourkela, I did my PhD from Northeastern University. Then I joined the ISRO. I am now working as the group director of the component quality assessment group. I want to share that the electronic components used in Chandrayaan-3 were used only after our certification. For the successful implementation, the mission has achieved success,” said Sarat from the ISRO through video conferencing.