The successful landing of ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 lander Vikram on the south pole of the Moon on August 23, 2023, was a historic moment for India. It was the country’s third lunar mission and its first attempt to soft-land on the Moon’s south pole.
The landing was met with widespread celebration across India, with people taking to social media to express their pride and joy. However, amid the landing of Chandrayaan-3 buzz, a tweet by a UK journalist also sparked a debate on social media about the cost of the mission and the UK’s aid to India.
Why Chandrayaan-3 Landing Led To ’45 Trillion’ Trend On Social Media?
Sophie Corcoran, a British journalist, said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that the UK should not send aid to India since it has an advanced space program.
She also said it’s time “we get our money back”.
“India has become the first country to successfully land a spacecraft near the south pole of the moon so why did we send them £33.4 million in foreign aid which is set to rise to £57 million in 2024-25,” Corcoran tweeted on Wednesday.
The uk shouldn’t be sending aid to countries with space programs so advance they can land rockets on the other side of the moon
— Sophie Corcoran (@sophielouisecc)
August 23, 2023
India has become the first country to successfully land a spacecraft near the south pole of the moon so why did we send them £33.4 million in foreign aid which is set to rise to £57 million in 24/25
Time we get our money back.
— Sophie Corcoran (@sophielouisecc)
August 23, 2023
Corcoran’s comments sparked outrage on social media, with many people pointing out that the UK had benefited greatly from its colonial rule over India. They argued that the UK owed India a debt, and they claimed the amount was $45 trillion.
The post soon led to a ’45 trillion’ trend on X (formerly Twitter).
SIT DOWN!!! https://t.co/sCBq1Qnh4G
— 💕DesiDiva💕 (@desi_diva1)
August 24, 2023
‘Britain, give us back our $44.997 TRILLION!’
Thank you for reminding about the grant. Now ‘as a rule, salute us & return $45 TRILLION you’ve looted from us’
Britain gave, as you say,£2.3 BILLION i.e. $2.5 BILLION.
Deduct it & return the… pic.twitter.com/9lSfwpvoWn
— Shashank Shekhar Jha (@shashank_ssj)
August 23, 2023
The claim that the UK looted $45 trillion from India is based on a study by the economist Utsa Patnaik. Patnaik’s study, which was published by Columbia University Press in 2016, found that the British East India Company and the British Raj extracted a total of £9.2 trillion (equivalent to $45 trillion in today’s money) from India during their rule in the period 1765 to 1938.
Also read: Chandrayaan-3: Why is it important to land on the South Pole of the Moon?
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education