Every year 28 February is observed as National Science Day. On this day, in 1928, renowned Indian scientist Sir Chandrasekhar Venkat Raman discovered what is popularly known as the “Raman Effect”, with the help of his student K S Krishnan. The phenomenon is related to the scattering of light for which C V Raman was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930.
Well-known space scientist Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai was a student of C V Raman. 28 February 2021 was also a historic day for India when PSLV-C51, the satellite launch vehicle lifted off at 10:24 AM (IST) from the first launch pad at Sriharikota. The mission was completed successfully. The launch vehicle carried 19 satellites. It was the 53rd flight of India’s workhorse launch vehicle and the first dedicated mission for New Space India Limited (NSIL), the commercial arm of ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation). The mission was undertaken under a commercial arrangement with Spaceflight Inc USA.
In the past seven decades since Independence, India has made tremendous strides in various fields of science and technology. India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had a wide and clear vision about the scientific development of our country. Efforts were made to create a climate and infrastructure for scientific research and development. Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institute of Science were established as top institutes of scientific research and technological development. Atomic power plants, hydel power plants and heavy industries were established. The Green Revolution and the White Revolution took place. Agricultural produce multiplied manifold. Dams were constructed to boost the irrigation system.
A revolution took place in the field of digital telecommunication. IT (Information Technology) revolution was a great achievement. India made significant progress in computer software. Institutions like ISRO were established in the early sixties. We made great strides in the field of medical sciences. The list is quite long and we are all proud of our achievements. However, the credit goes to the visionary leaders, their efforts, hard work and teamwork. Though it can be said that we could have achieved more than we did, whatever we have attained is also significant. Let us focus on our milestones and the journey of progress in the field of space science and space technology.
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was formed on 15 August 1969 under the Department of Atomic Energy. Before the formation of ISRO in 1969, many steps were taken in this direction. In 1962, Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR) was formed and work started on establishing the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS). In 1963, the first sounding rocket was launched from TERLS and in 1965, the Space Science and Technology Centre (SSTC) was established in Thumba. The Satellite Telecommunication Earth Station was setup in Ahmedabad in 1967. The Space Commission and the Department of Space was set up in 1972.
India launched its first indigenous satellite ‘Aryabhata’ through ISRO in 1975. The second experimental launch of SLV-3 put the Rohini satellite in its orbit successfully in 1980. In 1981, satellite Bhaskara II and an experimental geostationary communication satellite APPLE was placed in orbit successfully. From 1982 to 2000, a series of satellites INSAT-1A and INSAT-3D were launched and placed in their orbits successfully. Several remote sensing satellites IRS were successfully placed in their orbits. Development launch of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles (PSLVs) started in 1993. These PSLVs were developed continuously and were instrumental in the successful launch of a large number of satellites for different applications and objectives.
India’s first lunar probe “Chandrayan 1” was launched in 2008. Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) in 2014 was a phenomenal mission that made India the first country to enter the red planet’s orbit in its first attempt. India successfully developed its Launch Vehicles. The latest PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) is its fifth version. The PSLV-C45 launched EMISAT (Electromagnetic Intelligence Satellite) and 28 other foreign satellites. The other launch vehicles developed by India are fourth generation launch vehicles and the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark II (GSLVMKII). This is the largest launch vehicle developed by India currently in operation.
A military satellite GSAT-7A was launched in 2018 and dubbed India’s “angry bird”. GSAT-31 launched on 6 February 2019 in the geosynchronous orbit is a high throughput telecommunication satellite launched by ISRO. This satellite is used to provide communications services for various islands and the mainland. It is also being used for bulk data transfer for a host of emerging telecommunication applications.
ISRO has launched 342 foreign satellites for 34 countries until date. The latest launch of PSLV-C51 on 28 February 2021 made it possible to launch 19 satellites in their respective orbits. It carried and launched Brazilian satellite Amazonia-1 with a mission life of four years. It was mainly a commercial launch carrying 13 American satellites and five Indian satellites, including the Satish Dhawan Satellite from Chennai based Space Kidz India. This was the 53rd flight for India’s workhorse launch vehicle PSLV and the 78th mission from Sriharikota.
Aditya L-1 is the future mission to study the Sun, its photosphere (soft and hard X-ray), chromosphere (ultra-violet) and corona (visible and NIR). The other future mission is “Gaganyaan” which is an indigenous mission that would take Indian astronauts to space. ISRO’s GSLV MKIII, the three-stage heavy launch vehicle will be used to launch Gaganyaan.
Another achievement in space launch vehicle development is the “Reusable Launch Vehicle – Technology Demonstrator (RLV –TD)” that was successfully tested in 2016. Another mission to Venus has been announced, more inter-planetary explorations and possibly a human flight to the Moon are also in the pipeline.
India has already entered the commercial phase of satellite launching. In 2019, the government announced the setting up of New Space India Limited (NSIL), a public sector company that would serve as a marketing arm of ISRO. The government announced a new commercial company IN-Space Ltd in June 2020 that would try to involve private companies in space technology and related commercial activities. NISL was established for the same purpose a year ago and hence this move has raised a few questions.
Opening the doors to private companies for revenue generation in space technology may have some benefits but it may also create an imbalance. The commercial demand-based space activity could adversely affect the research and scientific space exploration missions. The powerful waves of privatisation should not affect the research and scientific space exploration missions.
[The writer is Professor of Electronics and Telecommunications at NIT Jaipur as well as the Vice President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind]