January 14 is Dr. K Sivan’s last day in Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). He is retiring after forty years of service in ISRO.
He joined ISRO in 1982 working on the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). He then went on to serve as Director of Liquid Propulsion Systems Center (LPSC) and Vikram Sarabhai Space Center (VSSC).
When he became Chairman in 2018, I hoped that there would be more focus on improving and building more powerful cryogenic engines and starting the Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle programmes. This would help in clearing the backlog of satellites left for launch. It would also help lower the dependence on Ariane V or Ariane VI to launch Indian satellites.
The political imperative set the priority here rather than technological capability. The focus moved to India’s lunar mission, Chandrayaan II and India’s human mission, Gaganyaan.
The failure of the landing of Chandrayaan II, and the lack of transparency around the mission thereafter led to the feeling of corners being cut and the mission fast-forwarded to happen before the elections in 2019.
Similarly, India’s human spaceflight mission also seems to be pushed. The training of the astronauts in Russia, buying space suits and Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLS) from Russia, force-fitting the GSLV Mk-III for human spaceflight, modifying the Second Launch Pad at Sriharikota for human spaceflight, all point in this direction.
There seemed to be a similar diktat from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) for the launch of the first human-rated GSLV Mk-III before India’s 75th Independence Day on August 15, 2022. Sivan shared the same in his New Year 2022 message. The Minister who overlooks the Department of Space, Jitendra Singh, then clarified that there was no such diktat.
Sivan’s term as Chairman was overshadowed by a period of lower transparency, COVID-19 and seemed to be closer to the PMO. This invited questions about whether the ISRO programmes were being prioritized as per the Prime Minister (PM) or the capabilities of the organisation.
As the new Chairman takes over, he is faced with a roster of satellites awaiting launch, heavy-lift launch vehicle development, Chandrayaan III and missions to Mars and Venus. However, the PM who heads the Department of Space has prioritized space reforms and the human spaceflight mission, Gaganyaan.
I would think that if ISRO Headquarters focuses on space reforms, it would enable all the centers to work on the other priorities. Space Reforms are an essential long term reform that the Department of Space must embrace. However, till the time India’s private space ecosystem can deliver results, ISRO and NSIL would be left with picking up the slack in the system. We must acknowledge this.
Wishing all the best to the incoming Chairman S. Somanath. Wishing Dr. K Sivan a happy retired life and the nation thanks him for his service to ISRO for 40 years.