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India, one of the four major spacefaring nations in the
Asia-Pacific region, is engaged in a large space programme
towards realizing operational applications of direct relevance
to national development. The Space Commission and a separate
Department of Space were established directly under the
Prime Minister in 1972. The Space Commission formulates
overall policies regarding space, while the Department of
Space is responsible for the actual implementation of the
national space programme through the Indian Space Research
Organization (ISRO).
Aryabhata, the first Indian satellite, was launched in
1975. The 1980s saw the Indian space programme establishing
operational systems like INSAT for providing telecommunication,
television broadcasting, meteorology, disaster warning services,
and the Indian Remote Sensing satellite (IRS) system for
natural resources monitoring and management. ISRO is planning
to enhance the INSAT services through the planned third
generation satellites, INSAT-3A through INSAT-3E. India
has currently a constellation of five operational remote
sensing IRS satellites in orbit. The National Natural Resources
Management System (NNRMS), with the Department of Space
as the nodal agency, takes care of the overall integration
of remote sensing inputs with conventional resource survey
information for sustainable development of natural resources
and environment.
The development of endogenous capability in the country
has been the cornerstone of India' space achievements. Among
many other academic institutions, the Centre for Space Science
and Technology Education for Asia and the Pacific (affiliated
to the United Nations) has been conducting courses in satellite
remote sensing, satellite communications, satellite meteorology
and space science. |
