President Murmu addresses growing space debris issue, hails ISRO's clean mission goal

President emphasises how space exploration advances science and benefits various sectors

President Droupadi Murmu on Friday voiced concern over increasing space debris as a result of numerous satellites being placed in orbit and lauded ISRO for setting itself a target to make future space missions debris free by 2030.

Murmu was speaking at the maiden National Space Day celebrations to mark the first anniversary of the landing of India's Chandrayaan-3 project.

"Space debris can cause problems for space missions," she said during the event at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi that was attended by Union minister Jitendra Singh, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman S Somanath, engineers, ISRO scientists and representatives of the country's nascent space industry. The President appreciated the ISRO System for Safe and Sustainable Operations Management Facility, which ensures continuous progress of space research activities. "I am also happy to note that India is moving forward to make all its space missions debris free by 2030," Murmu said.