Bangalore: A group of top space scientists and technocrats of the country on Tuesday unanimously resolved on India embarking on a manned mission to space.
A day-long meeting, convened by the Indian Space Research Organisation, gave a go-ahead to the mission, likely to be realised in about eight to nine years at a likely cost of over Rs 10,000 crore.
Emerging out of the meeting, ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair said the mission would face several challenges, including development of life-support system and ensuring the safe return of the Indian astronaut.
The meeting was the first to be held by ISRO after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sought a national debate on such a mission following ISRO making a detailed presentation on the Indian space endeavour recently.
ISRO had pointed out that it was ready to take up such a mission. Top scientists who attended the meeting included former ISRO
Chairmen U R Rao and K Kasturirangan, Prof Yashpal, Dr Roddam Narasimha and National Aerospace Laboratories Director A R Upadhya, besides other top scientists of ISRO.
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