New Delhi [India], March 19 (ANI): Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh expressed both 'pride and relief' as Indian origin astronaut Sunita Williams' made a safe return to Earth after a 300-day mission.

Speaking in Lok Sabha in response to a query, Singh shared details about Williams' return and the Prime Minister's gesture.

'Today, at 3:27 pm Sunita Williams returned to Earth, after 300 days,' Singh said. He also referred to the Prime Minister's letter, which was released the previous day, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished Williams a safe return and invited her to visit India. 'You must have seen that yesterday the media released a letter written by the Prime Minister, in which he addressed Sunita Williams and wished for her safe return and also invited her to come to India,' Singh added.

Singh further recalled Williams' previous visit to India in 2007 when she had met the Prime Minister, who was then the Chief Minister of Gujarat. 'Before this, when she came to India in the year 2007, at that time also she had the opportunity to meet PM Modi when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat,' he said.

Singh highlighted the significance of the moment, saying, 'Our message of further good fortune was shared through the social media in which it has been said that this is such a moment in which there is pride, glory and relief too.'

Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh Assembly Speaker Chintakayala Ayyannapatrudu on Wednesday extended a warm welcome to Sunita Williams after her return from the extended expedition in space on March 18 aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft as part of NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission.

Speaking in the Assembly as part of the 14th-day budget session, Speaker Ayyannapatrudu stated, 'Sunita Williams successfully returned to Earth early this morning. Having spent 286 days in space on this mission, this marks her third spaceflight, bringing her total time spent in space to 608 days, a remarkable achievement.'

The Speaker praised space exploration as an inspiration for all of humanity and commended Sunita Williams for her dedication to 'scientific research, perseverance, and exceptional courage in facing extreme challenges, even at the risk of her life.'

He emphasized that such missions play a crucial role in the continuous progress of humankind.

Earlier, NASA Crew-9 astronauts breathed earthly air for the first time in over nine months following the successful splashdown of SpaceX's Dragon capsule. The astronauts disembarked the capsule on stretchers, as is customary, CNN reported. This precaution is taken by SpaceX for all astronauts returning from long-duration space missions.

NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 completed the agency's ninth commercial crew rotation mission to the International Space Station on Tuesday, splashing down safely in a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida, in the Gulf of America, according to a NASA statement.

NASA Crew-9 astronauts Sunita Williams, Nick Hague, Butch Wilmore, and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov breathed earthly air for the first time in over nine months on Wednesday after the successful splashdown of SpaceX's Dragon capsule.

Delays caused by issues with Boeing's Starliner spacecraft, which surfaced during a test flight piloted by Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams last summer, led to the astronaut duo remaining in space for nine months instead of a week, CNN reported.

The Crew-9 mission was the fourth flight of the Dragon spacecraft named Freedom, which previously supported NASA's SpaceX Crew-4, Axiom Mission 2, and Axiom Mission 3. The spacecraft will now undergo inspection and refurbishment at SpaceX's Cape Canaveral facility for future missions. (ANI)