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A LUNAR ROVER descended a ramp from the lander of India’s spacecraft within hours of its historic touch-down near the moon’s south pole, Indian space officials have said, as the country celebrated its new scientific accomplishment.
“India took a walk on the moon,” the state-run Indian Space Research Organisation said, adding that the Chandrayan-3 Rover would conduct experiments over 14 days, including an analysis of the mineral composition of the lunar surface.
Residents of the world’s most populous country celebrated after they saw the lander’s smooth touchdown on Wednesday.
It landed on uncharted territory that scientists believe could hold vital reserves of frozen water.
“India Goes Where No Nation’s Gone Before”, read yesterday’s headline in The Times of India daily, while the Indian Express newspaper exclaimed: “The moon is Indian”.
Ajay Bhargava, a New Delhi-based architect, said it was a great experience watching broadcasts of the landing, and that he felt it was the culmination of hard work by India’s scientists over the years.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi or any other politician should not take credit for this achievement,” he added.
Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman S Somnath said the lander had touched down close to the centre of the 2.8-mile-wide area that had been targeted for the landing.
“It landed within 300 metres of that point,” the Press Trust of India cited him as saying.
The rover was on the move, and working “very well”, Somnath said.
He said there are two scientific instruments in the rover and three instruments on board the lander, and all of them have been switched on sequentially.
“They will study basically the mineral composition of the moon, as well as the atmosphere of the moon and the seismic activities there,” he added.
After a failed attempt to land on the moon in 2019, India joined the United States, the Soviet Union and China on Wednesday as only the fourth country to reach this milestone.
The successful mission showcases India’s rising standing as a technology and space powerhouse and dovetails with the image that Modi is trying to project: an ascendant country asserting its place among the global elite.
The mission began more than a month ago at an estimated cost of $75 million. Somnath said that India would next attempt a manned lunar mission.
Many countries and private companies are interested in the South Pole region because its permanently shadowed craters may hold frozen water that could help future astronaut missions, as a potential source of drinking water or to make rocket fuel.
India’s success comes just days after Russia’s Luna-25, which was aiming for the same lunar region, spun into an uncontrolled orbit and crashed.
It would have been the first successful Russian lunar landing after a gap of 47 years. Russia’s head of the state-controlled space corporation Roscosmos attributed the failure to the lack of expertise due to the long break in lunar research that followed the last Soviet mission to the moon in 1976.
India has launched satellites for itself and other countries, and successfully put one in orbit around Mars in 2014.
India is planning its first mission to the International Space Station next year, in collaboration with the United States.
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€25 quarterly Joan ahh thanks so we only have to pay ya about €500+ a year when you think you have us in your dirty greedy hands,how about I keep paying you every Thursday like I have been for the last 20years.I’ve been caught with usc,property tax and wage cuts I live Thursday to Thursday so you can go f#uck yourself if you think you can bleed me some more
Anyone going on the march bring a whistle air horn pots and pans anything that can make noise lets make them listen
Yep. No matter how small the “bill” will be next year, its the next 2-5years we should worry about and tell them where to stick it.
I came across this little nugget last night. Looks like our water infrastructure is already being privatised.
Veolia (the crowd recently kicked out of Berlin and Paris) have a contract, courtesy of Phil Hogan, to run a water treatment plant for the next 20 years!!!
Surely it’s the Local Authorities, or even Irish Water if what the Govt say is true, that should be running the plant???
A private company running a treatment plant for profit and Enda says to believe him when he says the water infrastructure will not be privatised, yet it’s already happening!!!
Well said James, everybody should learn the name Veolia, because they’re the main reason inda won’t give us our referendum.
For the governments little accountancy trick (sorry, ‘off balance sheet funding’) to be kosher under EU law, Irish Water HAS to take in a certain amount of its total cost for providing water DIRECTLY out of our pockets. So, forget about the waivers, €100 discount etc. you’re about to be offered, they HAVE to be removed as soon as enough people have been conned/threatened into signing up to this scam. Remember the subvention has to be removed under EU law by 2016, so its drown Irish Water at birth or Long after inda and joan are voted out, you will be paying over €600 for your water, and that amount will keep rising.
Switch off RTE and ignore the news empire owned by the bloke handed our household charge to fit water meters. WE ARE WINNING WITH PEACEFUL MASS CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE AND PROTEST. Don’t forget that.
This water tax is a scam, we will not pay, rest assured Burton and Kenny, we will break you at the general election, the longer this charade continues the angrier we will get! Time is on our side, make all the threats you want, we will win in the end and you know it!
This feels like the start of something great.
Please don’t let the campaign lose momentum. Everyone must make Dec 10th. I know it’s a work day but I think it’s really important to let them know that these caps and tax reliefs are not going to make these protests go away. We have them on the run. Let’s keep the pressure up.
You personally have them on the run, I don’t think so. Charges are here to stay.
Won’t be taking a day off work for that
For me I think waiting till the 10th Dec for the next March was a big mistake, it should have been no more then a week from the last one on the 1st,
you do as you please Allison we will continue to fight for our rights and you can reap the benefits, there are so many people like this in Ireland we have to stand together.
Allison you’re a beaten docket ,go to work …. I’ll be there and take a few hours off to show this crap government and European masters that this Irish man is not paying for water AGAIN!!
Allison you are english you know nothing about us Irish how much we love our country and the greatest natural resource our people and lengths we will go to see corruption to the end.
The huge tax marches of the 1980s were on work days, it’s a case of pennies and pounds. If the numbers are small we’ll get the usual cr*p of “only the dossers turned up” but people willing to sacrifice even a half day’s pay ( a quarter day when you take all the deductions into account) will send a louder message.
Allison I think the majority of reason minded people, regardless of weather or not they support the government, realise that this is finished. There will be one more throw of the dice to see can they appease the rabble but it won’t, water charges are finished, Fine Gael stopped once more from charging people for water
I’ll definitely be there, as will my wife.
The gov have been trying to dismiss us. They’re compliant media have referred to ‘riots’ to dissuade legitimate protesters from going. The propaganda and spin is really quite sinister. There may be a few trouble makers, but they are miniscule. I feel it is the duty of the 99% of the rest, to call them out on it.
The gov has no credibility left. Not only should they disband Irish water, the should leave office. They’re ignoring the peoole!, and damaging democracy.
Looking forward to the 10th of December.
Allison – do you know anything about Guinness mahon bank and the illegal off-shore accounts held by politicians, judges and other ne-er do wells that parade around the country as though their opinion should be turned into law ?
Just because I’m English doesn’t mean I’m stupid. Yes I know all about the corruption in this country. I’m just saying like the property tax their mind is made up and we will pay the charges.
I have read johns post Allison can’t see where he mentioned that he personally has them on the run? Maybe you see things that aren’t there, these charges will be scrapped either by the coalition or the next government, general elections are great, we can elect a government that will listen and not try to rip us off with water tax scams and that’s exactly what we will do!
With that attitude Alison you are already beaten just as well most Irish don’t give up as easy as you seem to have resigned yourself to defeat before the battle has even begun.
Good for you Allison you won’t be missed
Water is suppose to thin stuff out not to solidify it , great to see the people out at last fighting for their rights ,remember house hold charges will increase with property values increasing ,austerity is on the increase
“Water is suppose to thin stuff out not to solidify it”
Not if you are using concrete ;)
Bring on the next protest. Let’s get 500,000 marching. Stop the greed, enough is enough Enda. Sick of you and your useless, greedy, clueless, lying party.
Well said. Knowingly and willing creating a monster like Irish water. It will be like toll roads. We can sit and watch our money drain out of the country. All for a few back handers. IW is being built for privatisation or why would we not just get another flat rate tax??
look what sneaky trick is being pulled with jack lynch tunnel that will make 4 tolls between Dublin and cork airports. county managers en route on football stars wages. their greed knows no bounds we can’t feed the pigs
You had 2 opportunities to get 500,000 already and it didn’t happen so its hardly going to happen on a work day
@talkingsense
500,000 is a figure FG will never see again at the polling booths, better you should concern yourselves with that.
I couldn’t care less how many people vote for FG to be honest, its only the anti water brigade who seem obsessed by them
Talking nonsense: you and your mates are finished.
The government also had 2 opportunities to listen and take note. They didn’t . IW and this group of corrupt gangsters occupying the Dail are finished.
Grim gob shite- What mates? Are you insinuating Im a member of FG. You’re on here often enough so should have seen me state otherwise many times. But theres no talking to stupidity is there. Have you no riots to be inciting in Coolock?
It’s good that you don’t care about Fine Gael Talkingnosense, at least you won’t be upset at election time when we destroy them and Labour!
Spot on, I think the only people who will care are FG and their supporters. And once they are gone we can have ff back in as there’s no other party out there who have a chance of getting elected
Ahh@talking nonsense did I hit a nerve? No matter how many times you state your not a Blueshirt, you constant anti- people right wing diatribes makes you one of them.
The only people that cause riots are agents of the state.
Grim gob shite, not at all. How is being in favour of fair water charges “anti people”?
“The only people that cause riots are agents of the state.”
Really? Looked pretty clear that the thugs in Coolock the other day were causing one hell of a riot. I do also remember that you were not only condoning it on here but willing pushing for more of the same. Does that mean you are in fact one of these so called agents of the state
Talking nonsense. What’s “fair” about water charges?
We already pay PAYE, PRSI, USC, Bin Charges, pension levy, A & E Charges, prescription charges, VAT, and so on.
The people have had ENOUGH. ..
It my Constitutional right to protest. I get carried away when I sense that this tyrannical Government is near it’s end.
As for protests.. when you batter, pepper spray and manhandle innocent people it’s only natural to react.
We all know Enda Kenny is in Dennis O’Brian’s pocket and Irish Water is going to be sold to him.
Those thugs as you call them inciting riots in Coolock have been sent back to the station. #heavy handed Garda
Enough is enough
The Irish people have been played as fools for long enough it’s got to stop!
10-12-14
Power to the people
‘No army can stop an idea whose time has come’ Victor Hugo
Well said Hulk.
Irish Water is Free. That’s the message to the “thicko’s” in Leinster House. ..
You will bully us no more..
That’s just it @Grim, it’s not free!!! We’ve been paying it through our taxes for years.
Great to see Ireland finally find it’s voice ! saw this online about Iceland who we were compared to at the start of the “crisis” it would be great that if at the end of this we could have a political sphere that was actually held accountable to the people they serve like they now have in Iceland and of course each irish persons right to water enshrined in the constitution,
http://collectivelyconscious.net/articles/why-iceland-should-be-in-the-news-but-is-not/
That is a fabulous story Brian Boru, about how Icelandic citizens revolted and got a new Constitution after their Irish style” bankruptcy.
thanks for posting the link.
http://collectivelyconscious.net/articles/why-iceland-should-be-in-the-news-but-is-not/
I particularly like this statement:
“The British government threatened to freeze Icelander savings and checking accounts. As Grimsson said: “We were told that if we refused the international community’s conditions, we would become the Cuba of the North. But if we had accepted, we would have become the Haiti of the North.” (How many times have I written that when Cubans see the dire state of their neighbor, Haiti, they count themselves lucky.)”
This story should be brought to the attention of all our citizens.
The fact is with regards to all of the main protests to date – they have all without exception been peaceful. The vast majority of protesters do not belong to far left republican groups – we are the ordinary working & middle class people who have extraordinarily taken every hit that our government has thrown at us with quiet resignation until now. We have listened to every promise made & broken by Kenny/ Gilmore / Hogan etc – we have watched them prosper as we suffer & irish water encapsulates everything that’s rotten with the political system & current regime. They have done everything in their power to ignore this movement but they cannot do that any longer as its now too big to hide. They are using their media machine to try and misrepresent us & it’s not working for them. Now they have told us that they are considering all options and will reveal their new & improved plans in a few weeks as the Irish people demand clarity. The only clarity we require is this quango being abolished & our water being safe guarded in such a way that prevents privatisation. I recall Endas brilliant 5 point plan – he had years to cobble that together & we know there was no plan. Now he has a few weeks to provide his master plan for this quango !! I for one have every faith in him to deliver more confusion, more spin, more rhetoric & more ineptitude. Our govt refuses to listen but that’s fine with me as I’m more than happy to watch them drown & I have no doubt the protest movement will deliver that message with absolute clarity soon.
We ALL have to be together in this …its vital !!…Endas party along with labour and the rest have to go …ENOUGH OF THE GREED !
Looking forward to the protest outside the dail on the 10th of December and will be outside Talbot St entrance on the 29th of November to show the quango what we think of them.
Good lad, you go show them on the 29th. While they’re all at home for the weekend.
The government know they are finished. They know that they have lost the will of the people. Yet, they will cling to power by any way they can. They control the main stream media. They are using it to try and cause dissention and divide among people. They have accused the people peacefully protesting of violence, without producing one shred of evidence to that effect. When all evidence shows it is the protesters suffering at the hands of the police. It is time for them to realise we know their games, that we have had enough of their austerity, enough of their greed and corruption, enough of lies and spin, enough of the Irish people being turned into the cash cows of Europe’s bankers. It is no longer about water, or the taxing of it. It is about not having any trust in the government, that they have the interests of the Irish people as their main concern. They have lost any mandate they have to govern. And they know it.
Good point Dave, we can boycott all the newspapers that are spreading these lies, hit them where it hurts, they will get the message very quickly when all these papers are returned unsold! We have the power!
There’s a disturbing and developing ploy by some sinister government & astonishingly (garda representative bodies) attempting to claim dissident & sinister elements are infiltrating the movement. It’s complete hogwash with indo’s headline this morning addresses of the justice minister & gardai were given out on a facebook page. Of course no evidence offered. This is nothing more than this appalling government trying to deflect and it’s a further disgraceful tatic with senior ministers add fuel to a very dim flame. Besides even if these silly rumors were true,sure it wouldn’t be long when Irish water will have every citizens PPS Numbers along. Every protest movement has a small unsavory element, there wasn’t so much as a crisp bag being thrown on the ground at a single rally last weekend. The only sinister thing I’ve seen is an elderly lady being manhandled by to young garda in santry during the week, shameful stuff
It’s kinda ironic that Fianna Fáil created this mess on two counts – the recent financial crisis AND the abolition of rates in 1977. And they’re probably going to get re-elected. As The Who once sang: “meet the new boss – same as the old boss.”
Wexford people part of INM – not much coverage inside.
Exactly Joey Dempsey. The commissioner was saying that 3 guards a day are being assaulted so where are all the arrests and court appearances for these so called assaults? I’ve seen heaps of vids on youtube and have not seen a guard getting assaulted even once. I just saw the complete opposite with cops pushing and man handling people. The government’s new tactic is to win this battle by swaying public opinion the protests using fictitious assaults on cops. They’re really clutching at straws to push this bond holder tax through.
December 10th needs to be a massive but peaceful protest, but not to be taken over by gurriers. The more that show up the less chance it will be hijacked by those just looking for an excuse to cause trouble. To get the clowns in the Dáil to listen harder will require some sort of gridlock, truckers and farmers etc. as the focus is on water but it’s as much a message to our dear leaders about we’re not taking any more austerity and you have not listened. The French are experts at getting their way. The irish have finally found their voice so the organisers need to be clever about this. We need to achieve the goal if no water charges, so it has to be massive, effective and importantly peaceful. This is not some left wing protest to be hijacked by the shinners, this is the voice of the whole country wanting democracy.
We’ve been patient with various governments long enough, the water charges was just the last straw in a long list of money grabbing by the government, but I think finally we reached breaking point and the government is frantically , feebly attempting to appease the population so they’ll get votes in he next election. Hah! We won’t be fooled again!
@Bluemist you’re right they will. They’ll be staring out their windows watching people protest and fight to keep our water out if the hands of vulture capitalists.
” OUR establishment politicians are now held so low in the public’s estimation that voters appear to favour a party led by a man who has been mired in rape and child abuse controversies and has outstanding questions to answer on both.
How low can you go? That seems to be the current motto for the Fine Gael/Labour Government as it lurches deeper and deeper into crisis. We are not (yet) in the realms of the last days of Brian Cowen’s government, yet we are in extraordinary political territory. It feels as if this Government may possibly be gone beyond the tipping point; that they are held in such derision by the large sections of the population they could find it exceptionally difficult, if not impossible, to rescue the situation.”
Irish Water have all our addresses and we did not give them,,,,,,,,something sinister….
Absolutely Andy, definitly something sinister in a government having a record of every property it governs
I understand the anger around the incompetence and corruption in the set up of irish water. However all these protests will lead to two things.
The probable fall of the government and the water system being left to rot. Because not one of the opposition parties have said how they will improve it.
Yawn
You know the Govt collected over €500 million in LPT last year that could have been put into fixing the network instead of meters?
And they had a billion this year that they used to cut taxes for the rich and increase the child allowance. Could that not have gone into the water network???
Or the tax cuts for “high earners” being planned for next year, surely our rotting water infrastructure needs it more?
There is plenty of money my friend that could be put into the water network, but the Govt would rather use it to buy votes.
We still borrow €8 billion a year don’t we. Plenty of imaginary money you mean.
We still borrow the exact amount we pay in interest to the Troika you mean, which is actually imaginary money and could dropped if our cowards in the Dail stood up to the EU, but thats an argument for another day.
And you are happy to offer tax cuts to the rich this year and next even though we are borrowing €8billion per year? Why is that ok? The money is going to be borrowed either way and the Govt have accounted for that.
Im suggesting that any “extra” money we have, could easily be put into the water infrastructure that is rotting, as you said, instead of tax cuts for the rich, could it not?
Where did I say I support tax cuts to the rich?
You talk like we’re the only country that borrows money. Imaginary money is the life blood of capitalism, there wouldn’t be enough room on the planet to store all the imaginary money that has been created.
It’s ok Stephen, I will settle for the fall of the government, this whole Irish water thing is a scam from start to finish!
Dec 10th all the layabouts will have something to do
I’m sure that there’s a low tide forecast for that day,Bluemist. You can take time out for yourself and scrape the walls off your bridge .
This comment by Bluemist essentially sums up what FineGael people think of their fellow countryman. Denigrate the people who protest as ‘layabouts’, ‘scroungers’ or worse still ‘sinister types’. They constantly patronise the protesters with lazy stereotyping because they know this is a fight they are going to lose. And they will also lose the bigger fight of a GE sooner or later also. As part of the electorate conned into voting for FG/Lab in the last election, I will not be fooled by any more of their bluster/lies. I would like this govt to put the water issue to the ultimate referendum and call an election NOW!!
Alan Kelly is using a spoon to dredge all of Irish Water(s)
Yes, look at the window of Leinster House and see the people they have victimized stand up and tell them we will not pay these unfair and unjust taxes.
I’m taking the day off work and paying for a train just to bet there on the 10th, now where do i come into your prejudices, Bluemist?
copycat Bob …. I’m really looking forward to it though – I hope the Ansbacher thing holds the clowns in office until then – but it looks like the Government are going to fall – I expect sitting ministers to be arrested and all before then !
Alan Kelly’s career will be very short, he is still trying to convince the people to accept this water tax scam, it’s not going to work Alan, cut your losses and end this charade, it has gone beyond a joke at this stage! You cannot justify extortion no matter what way you present it! You have failed, call an election and we will deliver our verdict!
Is it possible that Alan Kelly job as minister will be shortest in irish political history ?
They will do everything to get people to sign up for their quango. Then they will do as the IMF demands and privatise it. Wait for them to offer a €200 voucher from Brown Thomas if you sign the dotted line……..The threats and stick has not worked. Don’t let these corrupt B@stards now bribe us into signing further into IMF Slavery.
Furthermore, this is part of an austerity package. It can come off of this hand or that hand, but one way or another, we’ll pay.
December 10th peaceful protest. Please bring everyone. The wonderful people of this lovely little country of ours will come together peacefully to put a stop to this betrayal of the people. December 10th. Bring a whistle !
I’d say 95 per cent of td’s won’t see the inside of dail eireann again!
Last week’s news?
Great article! At least the journal is reporting the facts!
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