Acclaimed Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the NXT event held at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Saturday, presenting the Indian PM with the flags of the two countries that had been onboard the International Space Station (ISS).
During the brief interaction, Artemyev also presented PM Modi a book 'On the Moon' written by noted Russian theoretical space scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky.
"In turn, PM Narendra Modi highly praised the level of international cooperation in space exploration, and specifically noted the bilateral collaboration between Russia and India on space projects, including our country's contribution to the national manned space mission Gaganyaan," stated the Russian Embassy in India.
Born on December 28, 1970 in Riga (now the Republic of Latvia) in the family of a military engineer, Artemyev spent his childhood in the city of Leninsk in Kazakhstan where his father served.
From 1998, he was a test engineer at the S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation (RKK) Energia in the city of Korolev, near Moscow and took part in the preparations for the July 2000 launch of the Zvezda service module of the ISS.
Artemyev made his first flight into space in March-September 2014 as a flight engineer of the Soyuz TMA-12M spacecraft and the 39th/40th main expedition to the ISS together with Alexander Skvortsov and American astronaut Steven Swanson. Together with Skvortsov, he went into outer space twice.
In March-October 2018, he was the commander of the Soyuz MS-08 spacecraft and a flight engineer of the ISS-55/56 expedition.
From March 18 to September 29, 2022, he performed his third space flight as the commander of the Soyuz MS-21 spacecraft and the ISS-67 expedition.
According to Russian news agency Tass, in total, over three flights, Artemyev spent 560 days, 18 hours, seven minutes in space, and performed eight spacewalks.
India-Russia collaboration in the space sector dates back to the launching of Aryabhata satellite, sending the first Indian - Rakesh Sharma - into space on Russia's Soyuz T-11 spacecraft in 1984 and training four Indian astronauts for the prestigious, manned space mission Gaganyaan.
PM Modi congratulates CBSE students, says 'one exam can never define you'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday congratulated lakhs of students across India who appeared for the Class 10 and 12 Board examinations, as the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced the results.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reviews security with top officials, chiefs of forces
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi outlined the new normal in the country’s tough anti-terror policy, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday reviewed the security situation with top officials and chiefs of forces.
CBSE Class 10 results declared; girls outperformed boys once again
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced the Class 10 Board exam results for 2025 on Tuesday. This year, an impressive 93.66 per cent of students passed the examination. Over 23 lakh students appeared for the exam, which was held at 7,837 centres across 26,675 affiliated schools.
Chinese missile maker's stock tanks over 6 pc after India destroys its air weapon
The shares of Zhuzhou Hongda Electronics Corp Ltd, the Chinese defence company that manufactures the PL-15 missile, dropped sharply by 6.42 per cent or 2.56 Yuan to 37.33 Yuan on Tuesday, after India's air defence system successfully intercepted and destroyed the missile during the conflict with Pakistan.
Three terrorists killed in J&K gunfight
Three terrorists were killed on Tuesday in a gunfight with the joint forces in Keller area of Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district. V. K. Birdi, IGP (Kashmir), told reporters that three terrorists have been killed.
CBSE announces Class 12 result; pass percentage 88.39 per cent
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Tuesday declared the results for the Class 12 examinations, in which girls once again outperformed boys.
India is eternally grateful to armed forces: PM Modi visits Adampur Airbase after 'Operation Sindoor'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday morning visited the Adampur Airbase in Punjab to meet Indian Air Force personnel and express the nation's gratitude for their courage and fearlessness in defending the country.
Devotees throngs Venuban Vihar; meditates and offer prayer to Lord Buddha
Along with the rest of the world, Buddha Purnima was observed here at Agartala with a traditional fervour to mark not only the day when Gautam Buddha was born, but also the day when he attained Nirvana under the Mahabodhi tree at Bodh Gaya.