India's robotic Chandrayaan 3 moon-landing spacecraft is launched atop an LVM3 rocket from Satish Dhawan Space Centre on July 14, 2023. (Photo: AFP via Getty Images)

India's space ambitions got a boost when it became the first country to land a spacecraft near the unexplored south pole of the moon in August, just days after a similar Russian mission failed, and the fourth overall to achieve a soft landing.

After that success, India launched a rocket to study the sun and is scheduled conduct a test later this week as part of its crewed space mission.

“The Prime minister directed that India should now aim for new and ambitious goals, including setting up Indian Space Station by 2035 and sending first Indian to the moon by 2040,” the government said in a statement. Modi has also called on scientists to work on missions to Venus and Mars.