NEW DELHI, 19 March (H.S.) : Dr. Jitendra Singh, Minister of the Department of Space,

announced in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday that the four astronauts chosen for

Gaganyaan, India's inaugural human spaceflight mission, have been kept away

from the public eye to prevent any distractions during their acclimatization

and training programs.

The minister also said that one of the astronauts, Group

Captain Shukla, would accompany astronauts from other countries on their

journey to the International Space Station. Group Captain Prashanth Balakrishnan

Nair, Angad Prathap, Ajit Krishnan, and Shubanshu Shukla have been selected for

the mission. PM Modi met them earlier when the team was made.

Hindusthan Samachar / Meenakshi Bhattacharya