ISRO asked to put Indian in space

Bangalore, Dec. 17. (PTI): Defence Minister George Fernandes, today
expressed his keen interest in seeing India put a man in space before
long but the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said the
scientific community is not convinced that it is essential.

Speaking at an international seminar on advances in aerospace
sciences, Fernandes said: "I hope it won't be too long before our man
is (put) in space. That's what calls for real celebration".

Fernandes said India putting a man in space will be the "defining
moment" for the country and its aerospace sector.

Quoting a technical paper, he said while in China, usage of civil
aviation is lower than in India, Beijing has demonstrated its
capability in the space sector by putting a man in space.

Fernandes said China was behind India in aviation-related matters a
couple of decades back but now it has overtaken New Delhi.

"We have travelled a lot and done well. But we have to go a long way",
he said.

ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair, said the issue of putting a man by
India in space has been widely debated over the years by the
scientific community which is not fully convinced that manned mission
to space is an "essential feature".

But he told reporters later that "if the government wants a manned
mission, ISRO will undertake it".

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