Click to play videoIt has been a big week for Indian space research. Indeed that is really our image of the week. Amidst all the terror and the disappointments over our politicians, allegations of cash for sale, India is on the moon. A series win also against Australia. In that sense, it has been a proud week for India both in space and on earth.
India created history on Friday this week by becoming the fourth nation in the world to land on the moon exactly at 2031 hours (IST) on Friday, the Moon Impact Probe or MIP landed on the lunar surface with a painting of the Indian flag. A historic moment for India indeed.
It was a special privilege to be joined from Banglore by the first Indian who went to space, Rakesh Sharma to joins us.
Rajdeep Sardesai: Squadron leader thanks very much for joining us. I remember clearly those days in the 80s when you went to space, how do you feel about it?
Rakesh Sharma: It's a very big moment because it really tells all of India and the world is listening of course that India's space programme has come of age. We have the necessary expertise to look at exploration and from that exploration, and if we are going to use those results just as we had used the results of our space activity in the past, that is having science with a meaning, then I am that sure we going to be achieving a lot more. It is a very meaningful success and it the really is the beginning of a new chapter for ISRO where it is focusing on exploration rather than exploitation which really what has been going on in near its orbit up until now.
Rajdeep Sardesai: Let me turn a naysayers for a moment. The Chandrayaan mission as you said by all accounts a success, but at Rs 386 crore, was it really worth it?
Rakesh Sharma: Of course its worth it because Rs 400 crore is really peanuts when you are looking at space exploration. You compare this budget with what other nations are spending in space activities, then really this does not even register on the scale. However, that said, even if it is appearing expensive, I believe it is essential because this is an investment into the future. This is something which has to be done. Quite like we are in Antartica, we really do not know as to what we are going to gain from there. Similarly, if you look back at human space activity up till now, there have been tremendous spin offs globally speaking and for India per say, the lives of so many our citizens have changed. Connectivity from end to end, television, telemedicine, tele-education. The spinoffs are fantastic. It is not the investment which we need to look at. We should look at the returns that we are getting from the investment.
Rajdeep Sardesai: As you said squadron leader ISRO has come of age with the Chandrayaan. What is the next big thing that we can expect now from India's space programme?
Rakesh Sharma: Lets look at this in perspective. ISRO has already achieved a level of excellence when it comes to applications and right now what ISRO is beginning to get done is exploration but before we achieve any kind of success or before we get something of value, we will really need to perfect a low-cost access to space. We will need to learn the skills that would be required for the human being to survive in that hostile environment and after surviving be productive in the environment. So really, these are the early days and there's a lot yet to be done. However, given ISRO's track record and given the focus and the carefully thought out planning which has gone into it, I think we are starting on an exciting journey and it is going to extremely successful as the past has been up until now.
Rajdeep Sardesai: This mission was an unmanned mission.When do you hope to seen an Indian man on the moon. You were the first to travel to space, how soon will that happen?
Rakesh Sharma: Indian man on the moon, you will see only after you see an Indian man near it's orbit. There's going to be incremental steps. Because it is really a different ball game to send an unmanned spacecraft and then follow it up with the manned. Over here, it is got be surviable. The safety levels are going be higher. It needs to be repeatable. So, it is a diffrent level of difficulty which needs to be mastered. As per the present plans, I think, 2014 is when the first Indian would be going into space using ISRO's technology that would be near its orbit and after a few proving flights of that, somewhere aroud 2020 is when, they are planning to put the first Indian on the moon.
Rajdeep Sardesai: We will wait till 2020 then. Thank you very much for joining us.
(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter and Google+)
displayed with permission. Use of the CNN name and/or logo on or as part of CNN-IBN does not derogate from the intellectual property rights of Cable News Network in respect of them.