‘Mission symbol of new chapter in journey of Atmanirbhar Bharat’
Bengaluru/New Delhi : ISRO on Sunday successfully carried out the first Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-01) to validate the parachute-based deceleration system for the Gaganyaan mission.
An ISRO official told PTI that the end-to-end demonstration was conducted near Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.
The exercise was jointly executed by ISRO, the Indian Air Force, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard.
The Gaganyaan project aims to demonstrate India’s capability to send humans into space and safely return them to Earth. Planned as the country’s first human spaceflight programme, it will also involve precursor unmanned missions to test systems critical for crew safety.
The parachute-based deceleration mechanism is a key component to ensure the safe recovery of the crew module during re-entry and landing.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said Gaganyaan mission symbolises a “new chapter” in the journey of Atmanirbhar Bharat and called astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and other Gaganyatris as country’s “gems” and pioneers of national aspirations.
At an event hosted by the IAF at Subroto Park in New Delhi, Singh felicitated the four Gaganyatris.
The ceremony comes after the successful Axiom 4 mission, in which Shukla was a team member and represented India.
“We do not see space only as a field of research, but as the future of tomorrow’s economy, security, energy, and humanity,” Singh said.
He said that India is steadily advancing beyond the Earth’s surface into “new frontiers of space.”
“We’ve already marked our presence from Moon to Mars, and today, the nation stands fully prepared for missions like Gaganyaan,” the Defence Minister said.
The Gaganyaan project, formally announced by Modi in 2018, aims to send a crewed flight into the 400 km-orbit for a three-day mission in 2027.
He termed the achievement as not merely a technological milestone, but “a new chapter in Aatmanirbhar Bharat when we are proudly standing tall among the world’s leading space powers.”
Singh underlined that India’s space programme is not confined to laboratories and launch vehicles, but rather a “reflection of our national aspirations and global vision.”
“From Chandrayaan to Mangalyaan, we have demonstrated that even with limited resources, an unlimited will power can transform the most challenging goals into remarkable accomplishments,” he said.
Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap, and Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla are the four chosen Gaganyatris.
Their names were revealed for the first time in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in Thiruvananthapuram in February 2024.
Big push for integrated air defence weapons
New Delhi : India has “successfully” conducted the maiden flight tests of an integrated air defence weapon system (IADWS) off the coast of Odisha, demonstrating its growing military capabilities in the face of an evolving regional security scenario.
The indigenous air defence system was flight-tested 12:30 pm off the coast of Odisha on Saturday.
The IADWS is a multi-layered air defence system consisting of indigenous quick reaction surface-to-air missiles (QRSAM), very short range air defence system (VSHORADS) missiles and a high power laser based directed-energy weapons (DEW) system, according to the defence ministry.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO, the developer of the platform, and the armed forces on the flight tests.
The flight tests of the new air defence system came three-and-half months after Operation Sindoor.
“I congratulate the DRDO, Indian armed forces and the industry for successful development of the IADWS,” Singh said on social media.
“This unique flight test has established the multi-layered air-defence capability of our country and is going to strengthen area defence for important facilities against enemy aerial threats,” he said.
Under the IADWS, an integrated operation of all the weapon systems will be controlled by a centralised command and control centre.
The command and control centre has been developed by the DRDO, which is the nodal laboratory for the air defence programme
