The Union Cabinet of India, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved a major package of space exploration programs on September 18, highlighted by the sanction of the ambitious Chandrayaan-4 lunar sample return mission.
The approval cements India's rapid ascent as a leading spacefaring nation following the historic south-polar landing of Chandrayaan-3 in August 2023.
The Complex Multi-Module Lunar Architecture
Chandrayaan-4 is designed to accomplish what only the United States, the Soviet Union, and China have previously achieved: landing on the moon, collecting surface core samples, launching from the lunar surface back into lunar orbit, docking, and navigating safely back to Earth.
The mission carries an approved funding outlay of 2,104 crore rupees (approximately 252 million US dollars) and is scheduled to launch within 36 months.
“This approval gives institutional clarity and budgetary backing for multi-decade space objectives and lunar sample retrieval.”
Venus Exploration and Next-Gen Rocketry
Alongside Chandrayaan-4, the Cabinet gave formal financial approval to the Venus Orbiter Mission (Shukrayaan) with an allocation of 1,236 crore rupees, as well as the Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV) designed to triple current launch payloads.
ISRO affirmed that the new programs provide critical stepping stones toward establishing the Bharatiya Antariksh Station by 2035 and sending Indian astronauts to the Moon by 2040.
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