India's Science and Technology Minister, Jitendra Singh has said that the country's first solar mission Aditya - L1 will reach its intended destination, Lagrange Point 1, in the first week of January 2024.
Speaking to Sansad TV in an interview, the minister also announced that the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will conduct a series of tests for India’s maiden human Space mission, Gaganyaan, in the upcoming year.
"Although Indian Space programme started late, about the time when the leading Space faring nations were racing to the Moon, today, the world is eagerly awaiting Chandrayaan-3 studies which landed on the virgin South Polar region of Moon. During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington, NASA made a proposal to send an Indian astronaut to the International Space Station (ISS), that is likely to materialize next year," he said.
Mentioning the developments of space technology in the country, the Minister highlighted how the common people of the country have been able to witness the launch of the mega space events like Chandrayaan-3 and Aditya. "Over 10,000 people came to see the Aditya launch and some 1,000 media persons were there during the Chandrayaan-3 launching," he said.
Mentioning that space research touches the lives of individuals in one way or the other, the Minister emphasized that the country is utilizing space applications in various sectors such as infrastructure development, ‘Svamitva’ GPS land-mapping, and smart cities. In the present, atomic energy is being used for clean energy and in food preservation and the medical field, he revealed.
Speaking about the growth of space sector, he pointed out that the country witnessed investment of over US$ 120 million (₹1,000 crore) in space startups in the last nine months of the current financial year from April to December 2023. “We have almost 190 private Space Startups after opening up of the sector and the earlier ones of them have now turned entrepreneurs,” he said.
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