Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who created history by becoming the first Indian to set foot on the International Space Station (ISS), was on Sunday awarded the Ashoka Chakra, India’s highest peacetime gallantry award.
The honour was approved by President Droupadi Murmu on the eve of Republic Day as part of the gallantry awards announced for 70 armed forces personnel, including six posthumous awardees.
In June last year, Shukla became the second Indian to travel to space and the first to visit the ISS as part of the landmark Axiom Mission-4 (Ax-4). His 18-day space mission came 41 years after cosmonaut Rakesh Sharma’s historic flight aboard the Russian Soyuz-11 mission, marking a major milestone in India’s human spaceflight journey.
The decision to confer the Ashoka Chakra on Shukla is being seen as recognition of the growing strategic importance of the space sector. The prestigious award is typically bestowed on military personnel for displaying “most conspicuous bravery” during peacetime.
A highly decorated fighter pilot, Shukla has logged over 2,000 hours of flying experience on a wide range of aircraft, including the Su-30 MKI, MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar, Hawk, Dornier and An-32. He served as the pilot for the Axiom-4 mission and played a key role in India’s expanding footprint in human space exploration.
Following the successful mission, Shukla became a household name, with his contributions — including conducting advanced scientific experiments aboard the ISS — drawing praise from global space experts.
The Axiom-4 mission was carried out by US-based private firm Axiom Space, in collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
Among the gallantry awards approved this year are one Ashoka Chakra, three Kirti Chakra, 13 Shaurya Chakra — including one posthumous — one Bar to Sena Medal (gallantry), 44 Sena Medals (gallantry), six Nao Sena Medals (gallantry) and two Vayu Sena Medals.
Hailing from Lucknow, Group Captain Shukla was commissioned into the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force in June 2006.
