The Indian space program today is a large integrated program, which is self-reliant and applications driven, maintaining vital links to the user community and committed to excellence in scientific endeavours.
The program developed capabilities to produce world-class satellites and launch vehicles and to apply them in diverse areas relevant to national development. India has established two operational space systems. The Indian National Satellite (INSAT) system, currently made up of nine satellites in orbit is one of the largest domestic satellite communication system in the world. The Indian Remote Sensing satellite (IRS) system, with a constellation of seven satellites, comprises some of the best satellites in the world for generating information on natural resources. Space launch vehicles developed by India are aimed towards providing autonomous launch capability to orbit these classes of satellites. India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) is well proven through eight successive successful flights and it provides the capability to orbit remote sensing satellites of the 1.4 tone class in polar sun synchronous orbits. The Geo synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), capable of launching 2 to 2.5 tone class of INSAT satellites, has been operationalised with three successful flights in a row, making India one of the six countries in the world to demonstrate capabilities for geo-stationary satellite launch.
Both IRS and INSAT satellites have benefited the country in various areas of national development. INSAT satellites are the main stay for the Television broadcasting and provide connectivity to more than 1100 TV transmitters. They also network radio stations, provide rural area communications, business communications and Tele-education and Tele-medicine services. They are also used to relay cyclone warnings, gather meteorological data, assist weather forecasting for emergency communication support during disasters and providing search and rescue support. The imageries and data from the IRS satellites are used for vital applications such as locating zones for availability of ground water in habitations having no access to drinking water, monitoring agricultural crops, providing advisories to coastal fishermen on potential zones for fishing, planning water shed, rural development and waste land management programs as well as disaster management support.
Front ranking scientific investigations are being carried out in the fields of astronomy, atmospheric sciences and long-term climatic research using satellites, balloons, sounding rockets and ground instruments. India has also embarked on an ambitious planetary exploration program, the flagship mission of which is Chandrayaan-1. This mission aims to place a satellite around the Moon for physical and chemical mapping of the lunar surface.
India has forged bilateral co-operative arrangements with more than 20 countries including Australia, China, France, Germany, Russia and USA. The scope of the international co-operation is multi-dimensional in nature, which includes conduct of joint missions, offering opportunity for flight of instruments onboard Indian satellites, exchange of meteorological data and offering education and training in the area of Space. It is worth noting that six scientific instruments from the USA and Europe are being flown in India’s Lunar Mission Chandrayaan-1. India has established a Centre for Space Science, Technology and Application Education for Asia and Pacific, affiliated to the UN and is offering well-structured educational programs.
An entity called Antrix Corporation has been established to promote commercial use of the space assets of ISRO and to help Indian space industries achieve global competitiveness. Global marketing of IRS data, launching of four foreign small satellites by PSLV, leasing of INSAT transponder capacity to commercial operators including INTELSAT, supply of spacecraft subsystems and mission support services of Indian ground stations are some of the highlights of the Antrix space business. It has also recently established an alliance with Europe’s leading satellite manufacturer, EADS Astrium, to jointly manufacture communication satellites using the INSAT bus for selling in global markets.
India piloted a satellite communication policy in 1997 paving the way for use of INSAT capacity by private users and for private ownership of communications satellite assets. Further, a comprehensive remote sensing data policy on acquisition and distribution of remote sensing data for civilian users is also in place. Remote sensing data from satellites have been accepted as legal evidence in many States of the country for purposes such as environment impact assessment for site clearances, forest encroachment and infrastructure development.
Linkages with academia have also been an important aspect of Indian space program. More than 80 universities and academic institutions of higher learning are involved in a variety of research projects related to space science, technology and applications.
In a nutshell, these multifaceted contributions from the Indian Space program, which has been developed and run with modest budgets, make it particularly significant in the modern context.