Children watch the live telecast of Chandrayaan 3 landing at Warming Up Kids, Salt Lake The Telegraph
Is it pronounced Chandraa-yan or Chandra-yaan? Is the lander named after Vikram Sarabhai? Why did it take so many days to reach the moon?
Children of Warming Up Kids, a sports centre, came up with a multitude of questions as they gathered to watch the landing of the Vikram on the lunar south pole.
Warming Up Kids is a fitness and football institute for children between three and 13 years. They meet at CB and CD parks, but last week they met to watch the historic moment at Cine Cafés in CG Block.
Some 15 kids had turned up and while chitchat and mobile phones kept them busy initially, the final moments had them glued to the big screen.
Nine-year-old Anaye Bafna burst into applause as the lander touched the moon’s surface. “Did we just witness history in the making? I had missed the launch but planned to watch this today,” said the Class IV student of La Martiniere for Boys.
Aadya Das was bummed that she couldn’t be in Sriharikota for the launch. “Around 200 students were selected from our school and taken there to watch it live but my name didn’t feature on the lsit. I watched it at home,” said the 13-year-old. “These moments are rare. It makes me so proud to know that India is the first country on the lunar south pole. I was nervous about the touchdown but I’m excited now.”
Runa Kedia, co-owner of Warming Up Kids, said they believe in holistic development of children. “Though we are a fitness institute, we organise events to celebrate such memorable occasions. We want kids to know about Chandrayaan-3 and the achievements of our country. This landing will be talked about in schools, so why not make them witness it live?” she reasoned.