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Indian Space Research Organisation or ISRO is an Indian government agency that does space and planetary exploration using technology and applied astronomy.
This Organisation works for space research in India. It contains the Indian Space Science Data Centre, also known as ISSDC. It is a data centre with all the primary data about the Indian space science missions.
ISRO is managed and funded by the government of India and the Department of Space. ISRO has been internationally lauded for its cost-efficient yet technologically competitive programmes.
ISRO History
ISRO was established on 15 August, 1969. Its main aim was to “harness space technology for national development while pursuing space science research and planetary exploration.”
The chief executive of ISRO is also a chairman of the Indian government’s space commission and the Secretary of the Department of Space.
India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, established the Indian National Committee for Space Research, Also known as INCOSPAR, in 1962. The INCOSPAR works for space research in India. Vikram Sarabhai led it. He was the founding father of the Indian space program.
ISRO then replaced INCOSPAR in 1969.
After six years of its establishment, India launched its first Aryabhata satellite. The satellite was launched into orbit in a Soviet rocket.
Missions and Achievements
- ISRO’s first satellite named Aryabhata was launched by the Soviet Union on 19 April 1975.
- In 1979 the first test of ISRO‘s home-grown orbital rocket was done. It was a satellite launch vehicle-3 (SLV-3).
- The SLV-3 was successfully launched on 18 July 1980. It carried the Rohini one satellite it was to test components that could be used in space.
- Only Indian astronaut Rakesh Sharma was an Indian Air Force pilot. In 1984 Rakesh Sharma flew to the Salyut-7, accompanied by 2 Russian cosmonauts.
- Rakesh Sharma conducted multispectral photography of the northern region of India during his time in orbit.
- INSAT was launched in 1998. It included a satellite named GSAT.
- An Indian remote sensing satellite used for resource monitoring and management was also launched in 1988.
- Chandrayaan-1, orbiter to the moon, was in the year 2008. Chandrayaan is translated as “moon craft” in Sanskrit.
- The evidence of water molecules present on the moon was discovered by Chandrayaan-1 Orbiter. It was the size of a refrigerator.
- Five years later, ISRO successfully conducted another mission known as Mangalyaan in 2013. Mangalyaan means “Mars craft” in Sanskrit.
- In the year 2014, Mangalyaan reached Mars. India was the fourth space agency to have the spacecraft in Martian orbit.
- The Mars Orbiter Mission was completed at $74 million.
- ISRO developed three rockets named Polar satellite launch medical PSLV, the Geostationary space launch vehicle GSLV and another version of GSLV being named GSLV Mark III or LVM.
- Another one of their missions is Chandrayaan-2 in 2019. From an altitude of 62 miles, the lunar orbiter can map the moon. It also contains a lander that will touch the Lunar South Pole and then deploy a small rover for further research on the moon.
First Mission
The first rocket launch of India was done on 1 November 1963, in the fishing village of Thumba located in Trivandrum, Kerala.
Aryabhata experimented with x-ray astronomy and solar physics, but it stopped functioning after a few days of being in space.
Facts
- Bengaluru, aka Bangalore, is where ISRO headquarters is located.
- The ISRO has 25 other sub-centres.
- 3 Satellite launching facilities are located in Bengaluru, Sriharikota Island, and Thiruvananthapuram.
- ISRO comes under one of the six largest space agencies in the world.
- The ISRO organisation works for space research in India.
- It also manages one of the largest groups of communication satellites and remote sensing satellites that communicate to and from the Earth.
Future Missions
- To Develop and design vehicles that launch rockets and provide access to space.
- Develop and design satellites that work well in earth observation, communication, navigation, meteorology and space science.
- INSAT program to be set up for meeting telecommunication, television broadcasting and developmental applications.
- Indian remote sensing satellites, IRS to manage natural resources and monitor the environment using space-based imagery.
- To research and development in space science and planetary exploration.
- Space-based applications for societal developments.
- On 15 August 2005, Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi announced that the country should expect its first flight in 2022, which will contain an Indian person. .
Conclusion
The ISRO is a space research organisation managed and funded by the government and the space department. The ISRO does planetary exploration as well as space exploration. The ISRO has developed launch rockets like PSLV and GSLV. This Organisation works for space research in India. It contains the Indian Space Science Data Centre, also known as ISSDC.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Ireland on September 23, 2015. It was the second time an Indian Prime Minister had visited Ireland. The first being Jawaharlal Nehru’s visit in 1956. Ireland is an island nation located in Northwestern Europe and surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean.
The Prime Minister of Ireland, Enda Kenny, had hosted PM Modi during his visit. The PM was attended by other dignitaries such as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Charles Flanagan, and Ireland’s Ambassador to India, Feilim McLaughlin. The main aim of the visit was to create stronger ties and improve trade and cultural relations. Described below is the impact of the PM’s Ireland visit.
Impact on trade and commerce
India and Ireland have strong bilateral trade and business relations. Before the PM’s visit, trades with Ireland were valued at €650 million in business in 2014. This included exports worth €248m and imports worth €402 million.
The indigenous exports increased from €32 million in 2012 to €55 million in 2014. In 2019, the total bilateral trade was around €1.2 billion. The exports and the imports have also increased to €636 million and €480 million respectively. Currently, the total trade between India and Ireland is valued at €4.2 billion. This resulted from improved bilateral ties between the two nations, owing to Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Ireland.
Indian Companies in Ireland
Many Indian companies carry out trade and commerce in Ireland. They provide services to Irish markets and consumers across various industries. Pharmaceutical giants such as Reliance Genemedix and Amneal Pharmaceuticals operate in Ireland. Major IT companies such as Wipro, Infosys, TCS, and HCL also have a strong presence in the country. The trade relations were bolstered after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Ireland.
Other companies like Crompton Greaves, Deepak Fasteners, Jain irrigation systems, and Shapoorji Pallonji provide consumer goods and services. Likewise, many Irish companies conduct their business in the Indian market. These companies include pharmaceutical and nutrition players like ICON and Glanbia, IT firms like Globoforce and other companies like Keventer, CRH Taxback Group, and Connolly Red Mills.
Impact on Education
Ireland has been a coveted destination for higher education for Indian students. Over 5000 Indian students have enrolled for higher studies in various institutions in Ireland. The students are admitted to engineering, technology, medicine and management colleges. More than 30 research agreements have been signed between the two nations that allow institutes in both countries to collaborate.
Many reputed institutes like Trinity College, Dublin, and Thapar University, Patiala, have signed MOUs for engineering and science disciplines programmes. Thus, Ireland is an essential collaborator in graduate and doctoral research. This collaboration is also considered an impact of the PM’s Ireland visit.
Indian Community in Ireland
Ireland is diplomatically significant for India also due to the large number of Indian citizens residing there. The Indian origin population is approximately 45,000 people, of whom 18,500 are Non-Resident Indians (NRI), and others are Persons of Indian Origin (PIO). The majority of the residents are working professionals employed in engineering, healthcare and management positions.
It has helped in establishing many policies for the Indian origin population. Two such policies in practice are wearing hijab as a part of the police uniform and the non-requirement of obtaining an additional work permit for the spouse or the partner of Critical Skill Employment Permit holders.
Cultural Impact
As a result of a large population of Indian origin citizens in Ireland and the relationship between the two nations, Ireland promotes Indian culture in various forms. One such example is the celebration of Diwali in Ireland since 2008. The event is organised every year in collaboration with Irish and Indian committees.
Further, an annual contemporary film festival is also a part of the celebration of Indian culture. The promotion of such events indicates the importance of cultural exchange between the two nations. The Irish communities also take a keen interest in conventional practices such as cultivating and consuming Indian herbs and spices. This connects the agricultural practices between the two nations. The cultural ties between the countries were strong, and Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Ireland helped strengthen them further.
Another significant practice is the celebration of International Yoga Day in Ireland. The Irish communities have accepted Yoga as a form of a healthy lifestyle. The practice is similar to the Indian tradition.
Tourism
India attracts around 44,000 Irish tourists every year. Indian tourists too visit Ireland in similar numbers. This was facilitated by the introduction of the common British-Irish visa scheme. This scheme allows the tourists to visit the U.K. and Ireland under one visa, rather than applying for two separate visas. It is valid for short stays. India also extended its Electronic Tourist Visa facility to Ireland to digitally facilitate visa approval and generation. The impact of the PM’s Ireland visit was such that it has also helped establish the tourism sector in both countries.
Conclusion
The diplomatic ties between Ireland and India have been impacted positively after Prime Minister Modi visited Ireland in 2015. It was an essential step toward strengthening the bilateral relationship between these two nations. India and Ireland have been important to each other since the 1900s.
In 2010 and 2017, two honorary consulates were established in Chennai and Kolkata. Later in 2019, a formal and fully functional consulate general in Mumbai. Ireland and India have also shown their allegiance to fighting terrorism after the Pulwama attack. India has also hosted several Irish dignitaries on various occasions. These visits were directed toward engagement in business, education, health and tourism.
Further, many agreements were signed to provide opportunities for employment to people of both countries. Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Ireland helped revive relatively stagnant relations between these two nations. Several cultural and historically similar instances bind these two nations. From Yeats and Tagore to cricket and Diwali, the cultural semblance between these two nations has helped create a strong tie between them.
