He loves his mother to the moon and back. And just so she knows Sumit means it, he has gone ahead and gifted her a plot of land on, well, the moon.

Meet Sumit Sinha (33), a wedding planner who is now the only Jharkhand resident to have “purchased” an acre of land at Mare Moscoviense or the Sea of Muscovy on the moon, where late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput also “owned” a plot of land.

Such land deals are executed courtesy, Luna Society International that is authorised by the International Lunar Lands Authority (ILLA) to offer to the public a limited number of properties on the moon in compliance with international treaties in order to finance a privatised exploration and development project, its website says.

The deed for land on the Sea of Muscovy The Telegrapg picture

There are many other websites that claim to do the same. But “owning” a piece of land on the moon, however, does not come with any ownership rights. The ownership package includes an embossed deed, a satellite photograph of the property and an information sheet detailing the geography of the moon's Moscoviense Region. The owners of land on the moon also get complimentary lifetime membership of Luna Society International.

“I wanted to give something memorable to my mother to express how much I love her. After a lot of thinking, I realised that gifting her property on the moon would be a great way of showing her how much she means to me,” said Sumit.

His mother Rita, now the proud owner of the property, is on cloud nine ever since Sumit handed over the ownership package on Wednesday.

“I used to tease Sumit that he never gave me anything as a gift, not even a pair of earrings. Yesterday, he came to my room and handed over some papers to me. Initially, I did not understand what it was, but when I read the documents, I realised that he has bought land on the moon for me. I am short of words. This is an emotional moment for me,” said the 52-year-old homemaker.

As per the registered claim and deed, this “purchase” of land on the moon will help finance a variety of programmes administered by the Luna Society, including the first non-governmental manned mission to the moon, as well as funding scholarships and educational initiatives for students.

A resident of Bariatu Housing Colony in Ranchi, Sumit lost his father when he was 12, and has been living with his mother since then. Handed over the responsibility of running a family at a young age, Sumit worked in New Delhi for 15 years and currently owns an event management company in Ranchi.

Sumit won the award for best wedding planner in Ranchi in 2018 and 2019. In 2018, Bollywood actor Soha Ali Khan handed over the award to him at a show in Bangalore. And in 2019, Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut conferred the award to Sumit at an event in Thailand.

After Bollywood actors Shahrukh Khan and Sushant Singh Rajput purchased lands on the moon, several Indians were quick to follow the trend. Last year, a Rajasthan man gifted a plot on the moon to his wife on their wedding anniversary. In 2020, a man from Bodh Gaya in Bihar had also purchased a plot of land on the moon.

Purchasing land on the moon, as of now, is largely symbolic. In 1967, the Soviet Union, the United States, and the United Kingdom came up with the Outer Space Treaty that debars any country or individual from owning any part of outer space.

At least 109 more countries, including India, signed the treaty later.