While writing this post, I was bewildered; not because I didn’t had any crazy moments in my life but to choose from dozens of them. After a long dialogue with my mind, I came up with five craziest moments of my life
When I hacked my Principal’s computer to leak out the question paper:
I was in my teens, probably in class X when I used my computer skill to hack my principal’s computer. I was not a backbencher, so I had no intention to leak out paper. But my friends put forward an offer of a FM radio set if I would leak the paper. I did so and caught.
My first love and first love letter:
“Why the great almighty has made her too beautiful”- that was my first reaction when I met her for the first time. It was hard to describe her beauty in words. Quite usual, I did what other adolescent would do. I proposed her. But amazingly the letter landed at her father! Even today, I remember the day when my parents fired upon me and thrown out.
When I was ragged:
I was first week in an engineering college and I faced the wrath of my seniors. But what was unusual that rather than ragging me, they were ragged my me! Thank god to my martial art skills that I learnt in my childhood. I was not a black-belt but purple one, enough to defend myself.
When I went up for a job
Under the pressure of my parents, I had to join a call center where I had to spend hours seated in front of a computer and to listen to gallis of the customer! I lost two precious years of my life, answering the gallis of the people. Finally it was unbearable and decided to quit. I went to my boss, recited some of my politest gallis and resigned.
When I got married:
It was a turning point in my life. Yet, I cannot classify as craziest moments, but one of the happiest moments of my well (no matter that what happens next)
In association with Blogadda and Pringoo!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
Food Security In India
“Of all the things before us, agriculture comes first”
-Jawaharlal Nehru
Agriculture was and is one of the largest employment sectors in the world, especially in India. More number of workers is employed in agriculture in compare to other sectors. In India, 70 percent earn their livelihood through agriculture. Although there has been a large number involved in agriculture, still there is a food crisis.
In India, agriculture got its dimension during green revolution. This introduced several new scientific methods, which increased food production several folds. But still, In India, 26 percent live below poverty line and several hundreds die due to malnutrition.
The main reason for food crisis in India and the world is increase in population. India is the second populated state with more than billion living in it. It is projected that the population will increase to 1.3 billion in 2020, and would leave behind China in 2050 if the population growth remains unchanged. To feed the large population we require millions of tons of food grain. It is estimated that India would require 343.0 million metric tons of food grains in 2020 to feed the whole population. There are only two ways to increase the productivity- by increasing the land under agriculture and by using scientific methods of agriculture. As we cannot increase land under agriculture as it is saturated, so we should head toward scientific method to boost the productivity. Scientific methods include better quality of fertilizer, genetically modified seeds (which are resistant to pests as well as have high productivity), better methods of irrigation and lots more.
The prices of important commodities are rising. Two-digit inflation rate has affected agriculture. Prices of commodities such as fertilizers and others used in agriculture have considerably gone up. So income from agriculture has been reduced and farmers are forced to leave agriculture.
Environmental scientists believe that our climate is changing very fast. IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change) warned us that climate change could cause change in the pattern of rainfall. The report says that North-western part would receive more rainfall rather that eastern part of the country. Just imagine that desert states such as Rajasthan would be flooded, whereas the land of clouds-Meghalaya would face water scarcity! This would affect agriculture. Uneven distribution of rain can convert agricultural land into barren. 70 percent of agricultural land in India is dependent on rain for irrigation. Climate change can cause Himalayan glaciers to melt, due to which there would be no existence of rivers such as Ganges or Yamuna, which originate from Himalayas. So, there will be severe drought in northern India and special arrangement must be taken in order to make agriculture possible.
Today, prices of fossils fuel is raising drastically. Where the price of crude oil was $50-$60 per barrel in year 2005, today, its price has been doubled; $120 (July) per barrel. Increase in prices of fossil fuels have not affected agriculture directly, but have affected it indirectly by reducing the production of food grains. Considering high demand of fossil fuel, farmers rather than cultivating food crops, they are now cultivating cash crops, which can produce bio fuel. Farmers get profit by cultivating crops such as Jatropha, which can produce bio fuel. So, production of food grains has considerably reduced.
As discussed earlier, to increase food production, area under agriculture should be increased. But rather than increasing, agricultural land is now being converted into industrial land. The recent example is of Singur, where thousand acre of agricultural land is converted into a car factory.
Urbanization is another problem. Agricultural lands are now being converted into housing plots and are converted into cities and towns. This has increased the pressure on agriculture.
Not only India, food crisis is now being worldwide. It’s a serious problem and it should not be over looked. However, United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has provided fund of billion dollar to recover the crisis. But still it’s not enough. Food crisis is not a short-term crisis. Its like a chain, several factors are responsible for food crisis. Once Mahatma Gandhi quoted before his assassination:
“Forget the past. Remember everyday dawns for us from the moment we wake up. Let us all, ever one, wake up now”
-Father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi
Acknowledgement
Manorama Yearbook 2006
Competition Success Review
-Jawaharlal Nehru
Agriculture was and is one of the largest employment sectors in the world, especially in India. More number of workers is employed in agriculture in compare to other sectors. In India, 70 percent earn their livelihood through agriculture. Although there has been a large number involved in agriculture, still there is a food crisis.
In India, agriculture got its dimension during green revolution. This introduced several new scientific methods, which increased food production several folds. But still, In India, 26 percent live below poverty line and several hundreds die due to malnutrition.
The main reason for food crisis in India and the world is increase in population. India is the second populated state with more than billion living in it. It is projected that the population will increase to 1.3 billion in 2020, and would leave behind China in 2050 if the population growth remains unchanged. To feed the large population we require millions of tons of food grain. It is estimated that India would require 343.0 million metric tons of food grains in 2020 to feed the whole population. There are only two ways to increase the productivity- by increasing the land under agriculture and by using scientific methods of agriculture. As we cannot increase land under agriculture as it is saturated, so we should head toward scientific method to boost the productivity. Scientific methods include better quality of fertilizer, genetically modified seeds (which are resistant to pests as well as have high productivity), better methods of irrigation and lots more.
The prices of important commodities are rising. Two-digit inflation rate has affected agriculture. Prices of commodities such as fertilizers and others used in agriculture have considerably gone up. So income from agriculture has been reduced and farmers are forced to leave agriculture.
Environmental scientists believe that our climate is changing very fast. IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change) warned us that climate change could cause change in the pattern of rainfall. The report says that North-western part would receive more rainfall rather that eastern part of the country. Just imagine that desert states such as Rajasthan would be flooded, whereas the land of clouds-Meghalaya would face water scarcity! This would affect agriculture. Uneven distribution of rain can convert agricultural land into barren. 70 percent of agricultural land in India is dependent on rain for irrigation. Climate change can cause Himalayan glaciers to melt, due to which there would be no existence of rivers such as Ganges or Yamuna, which originate from Himalayas. So, there will be severe drought in northern India and special arrangement must be taken in order to make agriculture possible.
Today, prices of fossils fuel is raising drastically. Where the price of crude oil was $50-$60 per barrel in year 2005, today, its price has been doubled; $120 (July) per barrel. Increase in prices of fossil fuels have not affected agriculture directly, but have affected it indirectly by reducing the production of food grains. Considering high demand of fossil fuel, farmers rather than cultivating food crops, they are now cultivating cash crops, which can produce bio fuel. Farmers get profit by cultivating crops such as Jatropha, which can produce bio fuel. So, production of food grains has considerably reduced.
As discussed earlier, to increase food production, area under agriculture should be increased. But rather than increasing, agricultural land is now being converted into industrial land. The recent example is of Singur, where thousand acre of agricultural land is converted into a car factory.
Urbanization is another problem. Agricultural lands are now being converted into housing plots and are converted into cities and towns. This has increased the pressure on agriculture.
Not only India, food crisis is now being worldwide. It’s a serious problem and it should not be over looked. However, United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has provided fund of billion dollar to recover the crisis. But still it’s not enough. Food crisis is not a short-term crisis. Its like a chain, several factors are responsible for food crisis. Once Mahatma Gandhi quoted before his assassination:
“Forget the past. Remember everyday dawns for us from the moment we wake up. Let us all, ever one, wake up now”
-Father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi
Acknowledgement
Manorama Yearbook 2006
Competition Success Review
No Gandhigiri on Climate Change
Only bars of prisons and lathis can save our mother Planet
The lifestyle is changing very rapid and hence is climate. Today the climate is changing with the pace of our lifestyle. Scientists claim that our climate is warming and estimated that human survival would be in danger within 22nd century. Besides that, our next generation would face much severe problems, as there would be no fossil fuels left for to meet the energy requirements. Although the world is very much concern about it, however this consciousness is not enough to save our mother planet. Now something must be done. It’s the time for all babus who enjoy the comfort of the seat in parliament to prove themselves that they are our leaders, our real heroes.
Climate change is one of the burning issues in the whole world. Neither me, nor you are unaffected from this change. I believe that the only way to get rid of this dilemma is to change our mindset. We ourselves should adopt more eco-friendly methods of living. Many NGOs and voluntary organizations whole-heartedly tried to do so. But their efforts had no great impact on us. We all are trapped into a single bogus ideology that nature can have no impact on human, as we are supreme. All the possible solution to this crisis had been tried except the legislative power of the leaders.
Till date, there are more than two hundred laws, which directly or indirectly related to protection of environment. Under 42nd amendment of the Indian constitution in 1972, Fundamental duties have been incorporated in it. Among these 10 principle fundamental duties, protection of the environment is on the top most priority. From ban on plastic bags to check pollution level from industries, government had tried its best to save the future. However, these laws had not been implemented up to its greatest extent. People rarely have heard of these eco-friendly laws. The greatest drawback of such policies (or laws) is that there is no harsh punishment on the infringement of such laws. Probably none of us has gone through a case where jail sentence has been awarded for degradation of environment. We don’t fear of using plastic bags or wasting water or electricity, as we know that no one would stop us. The fact is that extensive consumption of such elements has now been converted into our way of life and we cannot be in this world without them.Now the time has come for change. It is the time when our leaders should lead us to safe world. We ourselves have failed to change our mindset. Now only the lathis and fines of collectors can make this happen. Our history is crammed with hundreds of examples where only the bars of prison and heavy fines were able to abolish the dark component of the society, whether its a economic or social or cultural crisis. It is probably for the first time when voters cannot make politicians responsible for the dilemma; but politician should help us to get out from it because a single cannot change the society. Laws must be unsympathetic. It is obvious that government would face stumbling block from common people and may also face cuts in votes, but something needs to be done. After all, it is the matter of our children and their future.
The lifestyle is changing very rapid and hence is climate. Today the climate is changing with the pace of our lifestyle. Scientists claim that our climate is warming and estimated that human survival would be in danger within 22nd century. Besides that, our next generation would face much severe problems, as there would be no fossil fuels left for to meet the energy requirements. Although the world is very much concern about it, however this consciousness is not enough to save our mother planet. Now something must be done. It’s the time for all babus who enjoy the comfort of the seat in parliament to prove themselves that they are our leaders, our real heroes.
Climate change is one of the burning issues in the whole world. Neither me, nor you are unaffected from this change. I believe that the only way to get rid of this dilemma is to change our mindset. We ourselves should adopt more eco-friendly methods of living. Many NGOs and voluntary organizations whole-heartedly tried to do so. But their efforts had no great impact on us. We all are trapped into a single bogus ideology that nature can have no impact on human, as we are supreme. All the possible solution to this crisis had been tried except the legislative power of the leaders.
Till date, there are more than two hundred laws, which directly or indirectly related to protection of environment. Under 42nd amendment of the Indian constitution in 1972, Fundamental duties have been incorporated in it. Among these 10 principle fundamental duties, protection of the environment is on the top most priority. From ban on plastic bags to check pollution level from industries, government had tried its best to save the future. However, these laws had not been implemented up to its greatest extent. People rarely have heard of these eco-friendly laws. The greatest drawback of such policies (or laws) is that there is no harsh punishment on the infringement of such laws. Probably none of us has gone through a case where jail sentence has been awarded for degradation of environment. We don’t fear of using plastic bags or wasting water or electricity, as we know that no one would stop us. The fact is that extensive consumption of such elements has now been converted into our way of life and we cannot be in this world without them.Now the time has come for change. It is the time when our leaders should lead us to safe world. We ourselves have failed to change our mindset. Now only the lathis and fines of collectors can make this happen. Our history is crammed with hundreds of examples where only the bars of prison and heavy fines were able to abolish the dark component of the society, whether its a economic or social or cultural crisis. It is probably for the first time when voters cannot make politicians responsible for the dilemma; but politician should help us to get out from it because a single cannot change the society. Laws must be unsympathetic. It is obvious that government would face stumbling block from common people and may also face cuts in votes, but something needs to be done. After all, it is the matter of our children and their future.
India: Fast Emerging Space Power
India is truly a fast emerging space power in the world. Space conquest probably began during the cold war between two most powerful states, United States and Soviet Union (now disintegrated into 15 different countries). However, the main aim of the race was not space exploration, but was political exploitation. Although India was far behind in the conquest of space, but hats off to Indian space scientists who made India into the list of space conqueror.
Many believe that ‘Indian space exploration’ history is just few decades old when in 1961; the National Committee for Space Research was set up under the Chairmanship of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai. But in reality, the history dates back around 1500 years ago. Famous mathematician and astronomer during Chandragupta regime (5th century AD.), Aryabhata gave some great calculation regarding space that is almost accurate. He presented his theory of heliostat, which states that planets revolve around the sun. This theory was presented about a millennium before than the very same theory presented by Galileo. Rig Veda, the oldest text, also mentioned space exploration. India’s rich space exploration history is probably unparallel in the world.
But, in the real sense, the history of space exploration starts in 1963, when a sounding rocket, Nike Apache was launched from a church-turned-launch pad, Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) in Kerela. This was a point where space development started. Then the first Indian satellite, Aryabhata was launched in April 1975. Although designed by scientists of ISRO, but Aryabhata was launched from the Soviet Union cosmodrome at Baikonur. Then it was the era of advancement in communication. India too participated in the race by sending its first experimental communication satellite, APPLE (Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment), which made India the sixth country to send communication satellite.
Although designed by Indian scientists working at ISRO, previously, the satellites were sent by other countries, due to lack of technology. But after the successful launch of Rohini satellite into the space, India is now not only capable to launch her own satellites from native land, but also the payload of other countries. So India is a self-sufficient country in the field of space exploration.
With the failure of SLV-3 in 1979, India’s debut venture in developing satellite launch vehicle was introduced. But later in 1983, a modified version of SLV-3, carrying Rohini-2 was successfully launched. The satellite sent 2,500 pictures to its ground station. Again starting with a failure, ISRO launched ASLV (Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle) program. But in 1992, ASLV-D3 successfully placed SROSS-III into the orbit. Then came the PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) program. Its first successful launch in form of PSLV-D2 was made from the launch pad of Sriharikota in 1994. It escorted remote satellite, IRS-P2. India successfully launched its first GSLV (Geo stationary Satellite Launching Vehicle) in 2001, which allowed India to join the elite space club of five nations- USA, Russia, European Union, China and Japan.
Indian Space and Research Organzation has played an incredible role in the development of space technlogy and made India into the top list of space conqueror. Having a budget of $1.3 billion in 2008, ISRO made India’s name into the list of space conqueror. Till date, India has launced several communication and weather monitoring satellite. India’s first indegeneous multipurpose satellite was INSAT series. First in this series was INSAT 1A which was launched in 1982 from United States. India successfully launched I.R.S 1A, her first indegeneous remote sensing satellite in 1988. After the launch of I.R.S series, India stated locating resources on the Earth from space.
Indian space program is a broad one-from communication to weather forecasting and from mapping of resources on the Earth to space exploration. India has got a huge success in the field of communication. After the first launch of experimental communication satellite, APPLE, India has traveled miles to get a respectable position. Now using a satellite phone one can communicate to another, without considering the fact where the person is. We everyday use mobile phones, which is a gift of Indian space program. In television sector, one can just obtain a connection to any channel of the world just by placing an antenna on his rooftop. After the launch of INSAT 4A in 2005, India entered into the era of Direct-to-Home (DTH) service. Now private organizations were able to take pace with the government agencies in this industry. A man can surf Internet just by a push of a single button of his mobile phone. This type of comfort is present to us just because of the Indian space program. In weather monitoring too, India is very much capable to forecast the weather and can warn us enough before any natural calamity occur. ISRO also plans to map the earth and make the maps publicly available and thus will become a competition for Google Earth. The project is named Bhuvan.
Another major success of ISRO is the introduction of virtual classes using satellite technology. It means that a teacher sitting in front of a camera, can teach his students who are miles away from the classroom. This communication is possible only because of satellite technology. Modern age is an era of internet tecnology which can also be used to set up a virtual classroom. But for those who can not afford internet, IGNOU is a perfect one. Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) was set up for those graduate sudents who cannot afford studying in a well graded university. A student can optain a degree of MBA or MCA just by attending virtual classes, sitting in front of a television set.
Nation poet, Rabindranath Tagore wrote,
“If nobody lend their ears to your voice,
Do the work without them.”
Indian space scientists proved the statement correct when they built India’s first cryogenic engine without the support of any other external help. During 1990s, under the pressure of Glavkosmos, Russian Space Agency halted its support to India in the field of space technology. As a result, India’s Cryogenic project faced a serious threat. But thanks to the scientists of ISRO, who turn the dream of indigenous cryogenic engine into reality. This proved not only the capability of Indian scientists but also showed her desire to make her name into the list space conqueror.
On 22nd October 2008, a new chapter was added in the history of space for India by launching Chandrayaan-1 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. A Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C11) escorted chandrayaan-1 weighing 1304 kilogram. Its basic purpose is to make a survey of lunar surface and to locate minerals on the moon by staying in the lunar orbit for couple of years. It carried six scientific payloads- three from European Space Agency two from Nasa and one from Bulgaria. India became the sixth member of moon club after United States, Russia, the European Space Agency, Japan and China. It is the third member from Asia, followed by Japan and China. It again showed the capability of Indian Space scientists and her power in the field of space.
The launch of Chandrayaan increased the confidence level of ISRO scientist and foresees to send a manned mission to space in next few years. The first step towards this goal was the 600-kg Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE), launched using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket, and safely returned to earth 12 days later. This demonstrates India's capability to develop heat-resistant materials necessary for re-entry.
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has conceptually developed a Sun mission called 'Aditya'. ISRO Chairman G. Madhavan Nair announced that this mission was approved.
ISRO also plans to send a navigation mission, called Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS). It is similar to Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system and can be used to from any location of the country. IRNSS consist of seven satellite, which can detect the position accurate upto 20 metres. The work for the mission has already been started and it is believed that its fuctioning would start within 2012.
But these developments in space sector came into controversy. People generally ask what is the need for investing billions of rupees in space exploration. The answer is plaussible and yet simple. It is estimated that there may be enough resources present in the universe which can fulfill all our energy and resource crisis. Asteroids and comets are such heavenly bodies which may consist vast deposits of useful natural resources. Hence more and more countries would try to locate and capture those celestial bodies which are actually the deposits of useful minerals. It is also predictated that the main cause of the third World War would probably be scarecity of water and space exploration for the exploitation of these resources. Investment in space sector means that India would be, of course, one of the country in the lead in upcoming decades.
Many believe that ‘Indian space exploration’ history is just few decades old when in 1961; the National Committee for Space Research was set up under the Chairmanship of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai. But in reality, the history dates back around 1500 years ago. Famous mathematician and astronomer during Chandragupta regime (5th century AD.), Aryabhata gave some great calculation regarding space that is almost accurate. He presented his theory of heliostat, which states that planets revolve around the sun. This theory was presented about a millennium before than the very same theory presented by Galileo. Rig Veda, the oldest text, also mentioned space exploration. India’s rich space exploration history is probably unparallel in the world.
But, in the real sense, the history of space exploration starts in 1963, when a sounding rocket, Nike Apache was launched from a church-turned-launch pad, Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) in Kerela. This was a point where space development started. Then the first Indian satellite, Aryabhata was launched in April 1975. Although designed by scientists of ISRO, but Aryabhata was launched from the Soviet Union cosmodrome at Baikonur. Then it was the era of advancement in communication. India too participated in the race by sending its first experimental communication satellite, APPLE (Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment), which made India the sixth country to send communication satellite.
Although designed by Indian scientists working at ISRO, previously, the satellites were sent by other countries, due to lack of technology. But after the successful launch of Rohini satellite into the space, India is now not only capable to launch her own satellites from native land, but also the payload of other countries. So India is a self-sufficient country in the field of space exploration.
With the failure of SLV-3 in 1979, India’s debut venture in developing satellite launch vehicle was introduced. But later in 1983, a modified version of SLV-3, carrying Rohini-2 was successfully launched. The satellite sent 2,500 pictures to its ground station. Again starting with a failure, ISRO launched ASLV (Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle) program. But in 1992, ASLV-D3 successfully placed SROSS-III into the orbit. Then came the PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) program. Its first successful launch in form of PSLV-D2 was made from the launch pad of Sriharikota in 1994. It escorted remote satellite, IRS-P2. India successfully launched its first GSLV (Geo stationary Satellite Launching Vehicle) in 2001, which allowed India to join the elite space club of five nations- USA, Russia, European Union, China and Japan.
Indian Space and Research Organzation has played an incredible role in the development of space technlogy and made India into the top list of space conqueror. Having a budget of $1.3 billion in 2008, ISRO made India’s name into the list of space conqueror. Till date, India has launced several communication and weather monitoring satellite. India’s first indegeneous multipurpose satellite was INSAT series. First in this series was INSAT 1A which was launched in 1982 from United States. India successfully launched I.R.S 1A, her first indegeneous remote sensing satellite in 1988. After the launch of I.R.S series, India stated locating resources on the Earth from space.
Indian space program is a broad one-from communication to weather forecasting and from mapping of resources on the Earth to space exploration. India has got a huge success in the field of communication. After the first launch of experimental communication satellite, APPLE, India has traveled miles to get a respectable position. Now using a satellite phone one can communicate to another, without considering the fact where the person is. We everyday use mobile phones, which is a gift of Indian space program. In television sector, one can just obtain a connection to any channel of the world just by placing an antenna on his rooftop. After the launch of INSAT 4A in 2005, India entered into the era of Direct-to-Home (DTH) service. Now private organizations were able to take pace with the government agencies in this industry. A man can surf Internet just by a push of a single button of his mobile phone. This type of comfort is present to us just because of the Indian space program. In weather monitoring too, India is very much capable to forecast the weather and can warn us enough before any natural calamity occur. ISRO also plans to map the earth and make the maps publicly available and thus will become a competition for Google Earth. The project is named Bhuvan.
Another major success of ISRO is the introduction of virtual classes using satellite technology. It means that a teacher sitting in front of a camera, can teach his students who are miles away from the classroom. This communication is possible only because of satellite technology. Modern age is an era of internet tecnology which can also be used to set up a virtual classroom. But for those who can not afford internet, IGNOU is a perfect one. Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) was set up for those graduate sudents who cannot afford studying in a well graded university. A student can optain a degree of MBA or MCA just by attending virtual classes, sitting in front of a television set.
Nation poet, Rabindranath Tagore wrote,
Do the work without them.”
Indian space scientists proved the statement correct when they built India’s first cryogenic engine without the support of any other external help. During 1990s, under the pressure of Glavkosmos, Russian Space Agency halted its support to India in the field of space technology. As a result, India’s Cryogenic project faced a serious threat. But thanks to the scientists of ISRO, who turn the dream of indigenous cryogenic engine into reality. This proved not only the capability of Indian scientists but also showed her desire to make her name into the list space conqueror.
On 22nd October 2008, a new chapter was added in the history of space for India by launching Chandrayaan-1 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. A Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C11) escorted chandrayaan-1 weighing 1304 kilogram. Its basic purpose is to make a survey of lunar surface and to locate minerals on the moon by staying in the lunar orbit for couple of years. It carried six scientific payloads- three from European Space Agency two from Nasa and one from Bulgaria. India became the sixth member of moon club after United States, Russia, the European Space Agency, Japan and China. It is the third member from Asia, followed by Japan and China. It again showed the capability of Indian Space scientists and her power in the field of space.
The launch of Chandrayaan increased the confidence level of ISRO scientist and foresees to send a manned mission to space in next few years. The first step towards this goal was the 600-kg Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE), launched using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket, and safely returned to earth 12 days later. This demonstrates India's capability to develop heat-resistant materials necessary for re-entry.
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has conceptually developed a Sun mission called 'Aditya'. ISRO Chairman G. Madhavan Nair announced that this mission was approved.
ISRO also plans to send a navigation mission, called Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS). It is similar to Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system and can be used to from any location of the country. IRNSS consist of seven satellite, which can detect the position accurate upto 20 metres. The work for the mission has already been started and it is believed that its fuctioning would start within 2012.
But these developments in space sector came into controversy. People generally ask what is the need for investing billions of rupees in space exploration. The answer is plaussible and yet simple. It is estimated that there may be enough resources present in the universe which can fulfill all our energy and resource crisis. Asteroids and comets are such heavenly bodies which may consist vast deposits of useful natural resources. Hence more and more countries would try to locate and capture those celestial bodies which are actually the deposits of useful minerals. It is also predictated that the main cause of the third World War would probably be scarecity of water and space exploration for the exploitation of these resources. Investment in space sector means that India would be, of course, one of the country in the lead in upcoming decades.
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