NEW DELHI (Ruptly) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India can now consider itself a “space power” while addressing the country from New Delhi on Wednesday.

Modi went on to explain that under India’s Mission Shakti programme, Indian scientists were able to shoot down a low-earth orbit satellite. “Our scientists have successfully shot down a Low Earth Orbit satellite, 300 km away in space. A made-in-India anti-satellite missile shot down a satellite in the LEO (Low-Earth Object) satellite”, he said.

“India today registered its name as a Space Power. So far, Russia, the United States and China had achieved this status; now India has achieved this achievement, now India is the 4^th country to achieve this feat," Modi said.

Modi went on to tout the successful missile launch as a demonstration of the capabilities of India’s scientists and technological abilities. “Mission Shakti was a highly complex one, conducted at extremely high speed with remarkable precision. It shows the remarkable dexterity of India’s outstanding scientists and the success of our space programme.”