Haryana Judicial Service (Civil Judge) Prelims 2010 Previous Year Question Papers with MCQ Answers

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15.

Who was the first Indian to go in space ?

A: Kalpana Chawla
B: Kiran Bedi
C: Rakesh Sharma
D: Sunita Williams.

The answer is: C

Explanation

The correct option is C: Rakesh Sharma.

He became the first Indian citizen to enter space when he flew aboard the Soviet rocket Soyuz T-11 on 3 April 1984 as part of the Soviet Interkosmos programme. He spent 7 days, 21 hours, and 40 minutes in orbit and conducted various scientific experiments. He also had a video conference with then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and famously replied "Sare Jahan Se Accha" (the best in the world) when she asked him how India looked from space.

Some additional sentences are:

- Kalpana Chawla, Sunita Williams, and Raja Chari are astronauts of Indian origin, but they were not Indian citizens when they went to space.

- Kiran Bedi is a former Indian Police Service officer and a social activist, but she has never been to space.