Only three nations — the US, Russia and China — have a human spaceflight programme of their own. Shubhanshu Shukla’s flight is thus being seen as another preparatory step ahead of the Gaganyaan mission. https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-sci-tech/explained-realising-the-return-how-an-indian-became-part-of-axiom-4-10057516/