Facts

1. India is one of the few countries in the World, which gained independence without using violence.
   
2. The greatest games of all, CHESS and PLAYING CARDS originated from India.
3. The Art of Meditation and Yoga originated from India.
4. Martial Arts (karate and Judo) originated from India, not China.
5. The World's first University was established in Takshila, India, in 700BC. More than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects. The University of Nalanda built in the 4th century BC was one of the greatest achievements of ancient India in the field of education.
6. India has never invaded any country in her last 10,000 years of history.
7. Everything which was either discovered or invented by the Hindus in India was cleverly denied authenticity and downplayed by those who came to rule India, the Arabs and the British.
8. Sanskrit, the oldest language in the World, originated from India. Sanskrit is the mother of all European languages. Sanskrit is the most suitable language for computer software - a report in Forbes magazine, July 1987.
9. The ancient Indian astronomers had tabulated the movement and positions of the sun, planets and the stars in space, long before Isaac Newton came up with the theory of gravity after the apple had fallen on his head.
10. USA based IEEE has proved what has been a century old suspicion in the world scientific community that the pioneer of wireless communication was Prof. Jagdeesh Bose and not Marconi.
11. Cleverly termed by the west as Arabic numerals simply because the Arabs brought the knowledge of India to the West after invading India. Hindsaa (numerals) in Arabic means from India.
12. India was the most peaceful country on earth before the Arab invasion in the 8th Century.
13. The art of Navigation was born in the river Sindh 6000 years ago. The very word Navigation is derived from the Sanskrit word NAVGATIH. The word navy is also derived from Sanskrit 'Nou'.
14. Bhaskaracharya calculated the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun hundreds of years before the astronomer Smart. Time taken by earth to orbit the sun: (5th century) 365.258756484 days.
15. Ayurveda is the earliest school of medicine known to humans. Charaka, the father of medicine consolidated Ayurveda 2500 years ago. Today Ayurveda is fast regaining its rightful place in our civilization.
16. Budhayana first calculated the value of "pi", and he explained the concept of what is known as the Pythagorean Theorem. He discovered this in the 6th century long before the European mathematicians.
17. Sushruta is the father of surgery. 2600 years ago he and health scientists of his time conducted complicated surgeries like cesareans, cataract, artificial limbs, fractures, urinary stones and even plastic surgery and brain surgery. Usage of anesthesia was well known in ancient India. Over 125 surgical equipment were used. Deep knowledge of anatomy, physiology, etiology, mbryology, digestion, metabolism, genetics and immunity is also found in many texts.
18. India is the largest Democracy in the World.
19. The greatest knowledge on Love, the Kama Sutra is the work of India.
20. Varanasi, also known as Benares, was called "The Ancient City" when Lord Buddha visited it in 500 B.C.E, and is the oldest, continuously inhabited city in the world today.
21. The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra.
22. According to Saka King Rudradaman I of 150 BCE, a beautiful lake called Sudarshana was constructed on the hills of Raivataka during Chandragupta Maurya's time.
23. When many cultures were only nomadic forest dwellers over 5,000 years ago, Indians established the Harappan culture in the Sindhu Valley (Indus Valley Civilization).
24. The four religions born in India, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, are followed by 25% of the world's population.
25. The place value system and the decimal system were developed in India in 100 BC.
26. India has the second largest pool of Scientists and Engineers in the World.
27. India is the largest English-speaking nation in the world.
28. India is the only country other than U.S. and Japan, to have built a super computer indigenously.

FYI: There are many external links (text with blue color) in the post, please use them for more information and to check for terminologies.

Say Cheese!!!
10 Sins of Indians

10. Marrying a blond is a sin. Making love to a blond is a partial sin.

9. Pre-marital sex is a sin. Marital sex is a partial sin.

8. Taking dowry is a sin. Giving dowry is a partial sin.

7. Bullying one's wife is a sin. Having to submit is a partial sin.

6. Gambling is a sin. Playing cards is a partial sin.

5. Drinking is a sin. Smoking is a partial sin.

4. Eating beef is a sin. Eating pork is a partial sin.

3. Hurting a cow is a sin. Hurting insects is a partial sin.

2. Not phoning home is a sin. Running up a huge bill is a partial sin.

1. Forgetting first language is a sin. Speaking with an accent is a partial sin.

Subhas Chandra Bose

Subhas Chandra Bose. (January 23, 1897 – presumably August 18, 1945 [although this is disputed]), generally known as Netaji (lit. "Respected Leader"), was one of the most prominent leaders of the Indian Independence Movement against the British Raj.

Bose was elected president of the Indian National Congress for two consecutive terms but resigned from the post following ideological conflicts with Mahatma Gandhi. Bose believed that Mahatma Gandhi's tactics of non-violence would never be sufficient to secure India's independence, and advocated violent resistance. He established a separate political party, the All India Forward Bloc and continued to call for the full and immediate independence of India from British rule. He was imprisoned by the British authorities eleven times.

His stance did not change with the outbreak of the second world war, which he saw as an opportunity to take advantage of British weakness. At the outset of the war, he fled India and travelled to the Soviet Union, Germany and Japan seeking an alliance with the aim of attacking the British in India. With Japanese assistance he re-organised and later led the Indian National Army, formed from Indian prisoners-of-war and plantation workers from Malaya, Singapore and other parts of Southeast Asia, against British forces. With Japanese monetary, political, diplomatic and military assistance, he formed the Azad Hind Government in exile, regrouped and led the Indian National Army to battle against the allies in Imphal & Burma during the World War II

His political views and the alliances he made with Nazi and other militarist regimes opposed to the British Empire have been the cause of arguments among historians and politicians, with some accusing him of Fascist sympathies and of Quislingist actions, while most others in India largely sympathetic towards his inculcation of realpolitik as a manifesto that guided his social and political choices. He is believed to have died on 18 August 1945 in a plane crash over Taiwan. However, contradictory evidence exists regarding his death in the accident.

Early life

Subhas Chandra Bose was born in 1897 to an affluent Bengali family in Cuttack, Orissa. His father, Janakinath Bose, was a public prosecutor who believed in orthodox nationalism, and later became a member of the Bengal Legislative Council. Bose was educated at Ravenshaw Collegiate School, Cuttack, Scottish Church College, Calcutta and Fitzwilliam College at Cambridge University. In 1920, Bose took the Indian Civil Services entrance examination and was placed fourth with highest marks in English. However, he resigned from the prestigious Indian Civil Service in April 1921 despite his high ranking in the merit list, and went on to become an active member of India's independence movement. He joined the Indian National Congress, and was particularly active in its youth wing.

Still, Bose's ideals did not match those of Mahatma Gandhi's single belief in non-violence. He therefore returned to Calcutta to work under Chittaranjan Das, the Bengali freedom fighter and co-founder (with Motilal Nehru) of the Swaraj Party.

In 1921, Bose organised a boycott of the celebrations to mark the visit of the Prince of Wales to India, which led to his imprisonment. In April 1924, Bose was elected to the post of Chief Executive Officer of the newly constituted Calcutta Corporation, In October that year, Bose was arrested on suspicion of terrorism. At first, he was kept in Alipore Jail and later he was exiled to Mandalay in Burma (where earlier Tilak had spent 6 years in prison). On January 23, 1930, Bose was once again arrested for leading an "independence procession", protesting against British rule in India. After his release from jail on September 25, he was elected as the Mayor of the City of Calcutta.

Over a span of 20 years, Bose was incarcerated eleven times by the British, either in India or in Rangoon. During the mid 1930s he was exiled by the British from India to Europe, where he championed India's cause and aspiration for self-rule before gatherings and conferences.

After his father's death, the British authorities allowed him to land at Calcutta's airport only for the religious rites, which would be followed by his swift departure. He traveled extensively in India and in Europe before stating his political opposition to Gandhi. During his stay in Europe from 1933 to 1936, he met several European leaders and thinkers.He came to believe that India could achieve political freedom only if it had political, military and diplomatic support from outside, and that an independent nation necessitated the creation of a national army to secure its sovereignty. Subhash Chandra Bose married Emilie Schenkl, an Austrian born national, who was his secretary, in 1937. According to Schenkl, she and Bose were secretly married in Bad Gastein on 26 December 1937. They had one daughter, Anita, born in 1942. Bose wrote many letters to Schenkl during the period 1934–1942, of which many have been published in the book Letters to Emilie Schenkl, edited by Sisir Kumar Bose and Sugata Bose.

Bose became the president of the Haripura Indian National Congress in 1938, against Gandhi's wishes. Gandhi commented "Subhas' victory is my defeat" . Gandhi's continued opposition led to the latter's resignation from the Working Committee, and the possibility that the rest of the CWC would resign. In the face of this gesture of no-confidence, Bose himself resigned, and was left with no alternative but to form an independent party, the All India Forward Bloc. Bose also initiated the concept of the National Planning Committee in 1938.

Actions during the Second World War

Bose advocated the approach that the political instability of war-time Britain should be taken advantage of—rather than simply wait for the British to grant independence after the end of the war (which was the view of Gandhi, Nehru and a section of the Congress leadership at the time). In this, he was influenced by the examples of Italian statesmen Giuseppe Garibaldi and Giuseppe Mazzini.

His correspondence reveals that despite his clear dislike for British subjugation, he was deeply impressed by their methodical and systematic approach and their steadfastly disciplinarian outlook towards life. In England, he exchanged ideas on the future of India with British Labour Party leaders and political thinkers like Lord Halifax, George Lansbury, Clement Attlee, Arthur Greenwood, Harold Laski, J.B.S. Haldane, Ivor Jennings, G.D.H. Cole, Gilbert Murray and Sir Stafford Cripps . He came to believe that a free India needed Socialist authoritarianism, on the lines of Turkey's Kemal Atatürk, for at least two decades. Bose was refused permission by the British authorities to meet Mr. Ataturk at Ankara for political reasons. It should be noted that during his sojourn in England, only the Labour Party and Liberal politicians agreed to meet with Bose when he tried to schedule appointments. Conservative Party officials refused to meet Bose or show him the slightest courtesy due to the fact that he was a politician coming from a colony. It may also be observed here that it was during the regime of the Labour Party (1945-1951), with Attlee as the Prime Minister, that India gained independence.

The Escape

On the outbreak of war, Bose advocated a campaign of mass civil disobedience to protest against Viceroy Lord Linlithgow's decision to declare war on India's behalf without consulting the Congress leadership. Having failed to persuade Gandhi of the necessity of this, Bose organised mass protests in Calcutta calling for the 'Holwell Monument' commemorating the Black Hole of Calcutta, which then stood at the corner of Dalhousie Square, to be removed. A reasonable measure of the contrast between Gandhi and Bose is captured in a saying attributable to him: "If people slap you once, slap them twice". He was thrown in jail by the British, but was released following a seven-day hunger strike. Bose's house in Calcutta was kept under surveillance by the CBI, but their vigilance left a good deal to be desired. With two court cases pending, he felt the British would not let him leave the country before the end of the war -Bose, This set the scene for Bose's escape to Germany, via Afghanistan and the Soviet Union. Bose had never been to Afghanistan, and could not speak the local tribal language (Pashto). Bose escaped from under British surveillance at his house in Calcutta. On January 19, 1941, accompanied by his nephew Sisir K. Bose, Bose gave his watchers the slip and journeyed to Peshawar. With the assistance of the Abwehr, he made his way to Peshawar where he was met at Peshawar Cantonment station by Akbar Shah, Mohammed Shah and Bhagat Ram Talwar. Bose was taken to the home of Abad Khan, a trusted friend of Akbar Shah's. On 26 January 1941, Bose began his journey to reach Russia through India's North West frontier with Afghanistan. For this reason, he enlisted the help of Mian Akbar Shah, then a Forward Bloc leader in the North West Frontier Province. Shah had been out of India en route to the Soviet Union, and suggested a novel disguise for Bose to assume. Since Bose could not speak one word of Pashto, it would make him an easy target of Pashto speakers working for the British. For this reason, Shah suggested that Bose act deaf and dumb, and let his beard grow to mimic those of the tribesmen.

Supporters of the Aga Khan helped him across the border into Afghanistan where he was met by an Abwehr unit posing as a party of road construction engineers from the Organization Todt who then aided his passage across Afghanistan via Kabul to the border with Soviet Russia. Once in Russia the NKVD transported Bose to Moscow where he hoped that Russia's traditional enmity to British rule in India would result in support for his plans for a popular rising in India. However, Bose found the Soviets' response disappointing and was rapidly passed over to the German Ambassador in Moscow, Count von der Schulenburg. He had Bose flown on to Berlin in a special courier aircraft at the beginning of April where he was to receive a more favorable hearing from Joachim von Ribbentrop and the Foreign Ministry officials at the Wilhelmstrasse.

Assassination Attempts

In 1941, when the British learned that Bose had sought the support of the Axis Powers, they ordered their agents to intercept and assassinate Bose before he reached Germany. A recently declassified intelligence document refers to a top-secret instruction to the Special Operations Executive (SOE) of British intelligence to murder Bose.

The decision cannot be considered as anything out of ordinary. In fact, the plan to liquidate Bose has few parallels, and appears to be a last desperate measure against a man whose uncompromising radicalism had seriously worried the leadership of the British Empire.

In Germany

Having escaped incarceration at home by assuming the guise of a Pashtun insurance agent ("Ziaudddin") to reach Afghanistan, Bose traveled to Moscow on the passport of an Italian nobleman "Count Orlando Mazzotta". From Moscow, he reached Rome, and from there he traveled to Germany, where he instituted the Special Bureau for India under Adam von Trott zu Solz, broadcasting on the German-sponsored Azad Hind Radio. He founded the Free India Centre in Berlin, and created the Indian Legion (consisting of some 4500 soldiers) out of Indian prisoners of war who had previously fought for the British in North Africa prior to their capture by Axis forces. The Indian Legion was attached to the Wehrmacht, and later transferred to the Waffen SS; its members swore their allegiance to both Hitler and Bose to secure India's independence. He was also, however, prepared to envisage an invasion of India via the U.S.S.R. by Nazi troops, spearheaded by the Azad Hind Legion; many have questioned his judgment here, as it seems unlikely that the Germans could have been easily persuaded to leave after such an invasion, which might also have resulted in an Axis victory in the War.

The lack of interest shown by Hitler in the cause of Indian independence eventually caused Bose to become disillusioned with Hitler and he decided to leave Nazi Germany in 1943. Bose had been living together with his wife Schenkl in Berlin from 1941 until 1943, when he left for south-east Asia. He travelled by the German submarine U-180 around the Cape of Good Hope to Imperial Japan (via Japanese submarine I-29), which helped him raise his army in Singapore. This was the only civilian transfer across two submarines of two different navies in World War II.

Indian National Army

The Indian National Army (INA) was originally founded by Capt Mohan Singh in Singapore in September 1942 with Japan's Indian POWs in the Far East. This was along the concept of- and with support of- what was then known as the Indian Independence League,headed by expatriate nationalist leader Rash Behari Bose. The first INA was however disbanded in December 1942 after disagreements between the Hikari Kikan and Mohan singh, who came to believe that the Japanese High Command was using the INA as a mere pawn and Propaganda tool. Mohan Singh was taken into custody and the troops returned to the Prisoner-of-War camp. However, the idea of a liberation army was revived with the arrival of Subhas Chandra Bose in the Far East in 1943. In July, at a meeting in Singapore, Rash Behari Bose handed over control of the organisation to Subhas Chandra Bose. Bose was able to reorganise the fledging army and organise massive support among the expatriate Indian population in south-east Asia, who lent their support by both enlisting in the Indian National Army, as well as financially in response Bose's calls for sacrfice for the national cause. At its height it consisted of some 85,000 regular troops, including a separate women's unit, the Rani of Jhansi Regiment ( named after Rani Lakshmi Bai), which is seen as a first of its kind in Asia. Even when faced with military reverses, Bose was able to maintain support for the Azad Hind movement. Spoken as a part of a motivational speech for the Indian National Army at a rally of Indians in Burma on July 4, 1944, Bose's most famous quote was "Give me blood, and I shall give you freedom!" . In this, he urged the people of India to join him in his fight against the British Raj. Spoken in Hindi, Bose's words are highly evocative. The troops of the INA were under the aegis of a provisional government, the Azad Hind Government, which came to produce its own currency, court and civil code, and was recognised by nine Axis states—Germany, Japan, Italy, the Independent State of Croatia, Wang Jingwei's Government in Nanjing, Thailand, a provisional government of Burma, Manchukuo and Japanese-controlled Philippines. Recent researches have shown that the USSR too had recognised the "Provisional Government of Free India". Of those countries, five were authorities established under Axis occupation. This government participated as a delegate or observer in the so-called Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.

The INA's first commitment was in the Japanese thrust towards Eastern Indian frontiers of Manipur. INA's special forces, the Bahadur Group, were extensively involved in operations behind enemy lines both during the diversionary attacks in Arakan, as well as the Japanese thrust towards Imphal and Kohima, along with the Burmese National Army led by Ba Maw and Aung San. A year after the islands were taken by the Japanese, the Provisional Government and the INA were established in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands with Lt Col. A.D Loganthan appointed its Governor General. The islands were renamed Shaheed (Martyr) and Swaraj (Self-rule). However, the Japanese Navy remained in essential control of the island's administration. During Bose's only visit to the islands in late in 1943, when he was carefully screened from the local population by the Japanese authorities, who at that time were torturing the leader of the Indian Independence League on the Islands, Dr. Diwan Singh (who later died of his injuries, in the Cellular Jail). The islanders made several attempts to alert Bose to their plight, but apparently without success. Enraged with the lack of administrative control, Lt. Col Loganathan later relinquished his authority to return to the Government's head quarters in Rangoon.

On the Indian mainland, an Indian Tricolour, modeled after that of the Indian National Congress, was raised for the first time in the town in Moirang, in Manipur, in northeastern India. The towns of Kohima and Imphal were placed under siege by divisions of the Japanese, Burmese and the Gandhi and Nehru Brigades of I.N.A. during the attempted invasion of India, also known as Operation U-GO. However, Commonwealth forces held both positions and then counter-attacked, in the process inflicting serious losses on the besieging forces, which were then forced to retreat back into Burma.

At the time of the Great Bengal Famine of 1943, during which millions died of starvation as a consequence of British inefficiency and indifference, Bose had offered (through radio) to provide Burmese rice to the victims of the famine. The British authorities in India (and in the UK) refused the offer, arguing that it was made for propaganda purposes.

Bose had hoped that large numbers of soldiers would desert from the Indian Army when they would discover that INA soldiers were attacking British India from the outside. However, this did not materialise on a sufficient scale. Instead, as the war situation worsened for the Japanese, troops began to desert from the INA. At the same time Japanese funding for the army diminished, and Bose was forced to raise taxes on the Indian populations of Malaysia and Singapore, sometimes extracting money by force. When the Japanese were defeated at the battles of Kohima and Imphal, the Provisional Government's aim of establishing a base in mainland India was lost forever. The INA was forced to pull back, along with the retreating Japanese army, and fought in key battles against the British Indian Army in its Burma campaign, notable in Meiktilla, Mandalay, Pegu, Nyangyu and Mount Popa. However, with the fall of Rangoon, Bose's government ceased be an effective political entitiy. A large proportion of the INA troops surrendered under Lt Col Loganathan when Rangoon fell. The remaining troops retreated with Bose towards Malaya or made for Thailand. Japan's surrender at the end of the war also led to the eventual surrender of the Indian National Army, when the troops of the British Indian Army were repatriated to India and some tried for treason.

His other famous quote was, "Delhi chalo", meaning "On to Delhi!". This was the call he used to give the INA armies to motivate them. "Jai Hind", or, "Glory to India!" was another slogan used by him and later adopted by the Government of India and the Indian Armed Forces.

Disappearance and alleged death

Officially, Bose died in a plane crash over Taiwan, while flying to Tokyo on 18 August 1945. However, his body was never recovered, and many theories have been put forward concerning his possible survival. One such claim is that Bose actually died in Siberia, while in Soviet captivity. Several committees have been set up by the Government of India to probe into this matter.

In May 1956, a four-man Indian team (known as the Shah Nawaz Committee) visited Japan to probe the circumstances of Bose's alleged death. The Indian government did not then request assistance from the government of Taiwan in the matter, citing their lack of diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

However, the Inquiry Commission under Justice Mukherjee, which investigated the Bose disappearance mystery in the period 1999-2005, did approach the Taiwanese government and obtained information from the Taiwan Government that no plane carrying Bose had ever crashed in Taipei. The Mukherjee Commission also received a report originating from the US State Department, supporting the claim of the Taiwan Government that no such air crash took place during that time frame.

The Mukherjee Commission submitted its report to the Indian Government on November 8, 2005. The report was tabled in Parliament on May 17, 2006. The probe said in its report that Bose did not die in the plane crash and the ashes at Renkoji temple are not his. However, the Indian Government rejected the findings of the Commission.

Political views

Bose's earlier correspondence (prior to 1939) also reflects his deep disapproval of the racist practices of, and annulment of democratic institutions in Nazi Germany. He also, however, expressed admiration for the authoritarian methods (though not the racial ideologies) which he saw in Italy and Germany during the 1930s, and thought they could be used in building an independent India.

Bose has been branded as a fascist in some quarters. Others believe that Bose had clearly expressed his belief that democracy was the best option for India. The pro-Bose thinkers believe that his authoritarian control of the Azad Hind was based on political pragmatism and a post-colonial recovery doctrine rather than any anti-democratic belief. However, during the war (and possibly as early as the 1930s) Bose seems to have decided that no democratic system could be adequate to overcome India's poverty and social inequalities, and he wrote that an authoritarian state, similar to that of Soviet Russia (which he had also seen and admired) would be needed for the process of national re-building. Accordingly some suggest that Bose's alliance with the Axis during the war was based on more than just pragmatism, and that Bose may have been a Fascist, though not a Nazi; alternatively, others consider he might have been using populist methods of mobilization common to many postcolonial leaders.

FYI: There are many external links (text with blue color) in the post, please use them for more information and to check for terminologies.

Say Cheese!!!

Santa asked to a lady;"what is ur new car's name?"

Lady replied:"i don't know. but it starts with "T"

Santa: You are very lucky, my car starts with petrol only.

In the Name of Independence

European traders came to Indian shores with the arrival of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama in 1498 at the port of Calicut in search of the lucrative spice trade. After the 1757 Battle of Plassey, during which the British army under Robert Clive defeated the Nawab of Bengal, the British East India Company established itself. This is widely seen as the beginning of the British Raj in India.

Since 1757 to 1947 we were ruled by British, several regional movements against foreign rule were staged in various parts of pre-1857 India. However, they were not united and were easily controlled by the foreign rulers. Examples include the Sannyasi Rebellion in Bengal in the 1770s, the 1787 ethnic revolt against Portuguese control of Goa known as the Conspiracy Of The Pintos, the revolt of Titumir in Bengal in 1830's and uprisings by South Indian local chieftains like Veerapandya Kattabomman against British rule. Other movements included the Santal Rebellion and the resistance offered to the British by Titumir in Bengal, the Kittur Rebellion in Karnataka, Polygar Wars in Tamil Nadu, Kutch Rebellion in Saurashtra.

Rather I have to say that we wasted 190 years in the name of Independence by just not realizing the reason behind this British East Indian Company, which is “Business, Trade and what so called Industrialization”. YMCA is started in 1844 in the midst of the unhealthy social conditions in London during the Industrial Revolution. Where does the India stand exactly at 1844 in the terms of industrialization? When the west is already vexed of this industrialization, Indians are still on ploughs.

After a several decades of continuous fight against the British with politicians who stretched our independence for the political gain, Word war 1, World War 2 and with some of our revolutionary freedom fighter we gained our independence under non violence political party.

Interestingly, after Independence our political leaders declared “Indian as agricultural country”, “80% of Indians live in village” and propagated our backwardness due to there lack our vision on Post-Independence. We spent decades after independence in house cleaning and to frame the country policies which is dominated by family political party again! The real industrialization started in early 90’s by our prime minister “Rajiv Gandhi”, who initiated and doesn’t concentrate on supporting the growth of Industrialization. The real boom started by Indian Visionary Prime Minister “P.V. Narasimha Rao” under the brilliant finance minister “Manmohan Singh” who are the great modern leaders in India. The IT sector and other Industries got the high peak support under BJP government who revamped the infrastructure issues and encouraging the industrialization.

The things we lost during British rule is being filled after 200 years. Better late than never, many state governments are encouraging industrialization by introducing many policies (Single window, SEZ zones etc...), but we still facing many problems between political parties in expanding, as some are opposing the land acquiring program for SEZ etc… The main parallel problem with industrialization is Agriculture sector, the government is trying there best to hold the polling votes of farmer by giving subsidies and facilities, which are never been gone to common man due to bureaucracy corruption and unemployment in farmers. The government is trying to increases the braches of the tree, but never thought that the devil is in roots, allotting more subsidies and budget to farmers is like increasing the braches of tree, and not looking in to the root problems like farmers unemployment, corruption in officers, knowledge of farming, new technologies in farming, educating the farmer on latest trend etc…The agriculture sector can turn to a boom, if we introduce Agro-Industrialization, and it’s a big business market in world.

FYI: There are many external links (text with blue color) in the post, please use them for more information and to check for terminologies.

Say Cheese!!!

The Farmer and Lottery

I saw an interview on TV where this one old farmer won ten million in the Lottery. Naturally he was asked what he was gonna do with all that money. He kinda scratched his head and said, "Not sure as I know right off. Guess I'll keep farmin' till it's all gone."

Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK)

Pakistan-Administered Kashmir (PAK), which India refers to as Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK), is a disputed territory claimed by India but controlled by Pakistan. It is administratively divided into three parts:

1. Azad Kashmir;
2. The Northern Areas, consisting of the regions of Gilgit and Baltistan. Gilgit was an agency leased by the Maharaja to British Government. Baltistan was western district of Ladakh province which was annexed by Pakistan in 1948. Both regions of Gilgit and Baltistan are administered as a de facto "Federal Territory" of Pakistan by a Pakistani minister. As the area is part of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region, the local population is denied the right to vote or send representatives to the Pakistani parliament or senate;
3. A part of Hunza-Gilgit called Raskam and the Shaksgam Valley of Baltistan region, ceded by Pakistan to the People's Republic of China in 1963 pending settlement of the dispute over Kashmir. This ceded area is also known as the Trans-Karakoram Tract.

These territories border the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir to the east and Pakistan to the west.

History

During the partition of British India into the Dominion of Pakistan and the Republic of India, the Princely states had the options of joining either India or Pakistan.

The Pakistan Declaration of 1933 had envisioned the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir as one of the "five Northern units of India" that were to form the new nation of Pakistan, on the basis of its Muslim majority. The Maharaja of Kashmir however wanted independence.

In 1947 tribal invaders arrived in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan has always claimed that its government was not behind these raids and that these were spontaneous expressions of Muslim sentiment following reports of killing of Muslims in Jammu and Kashmir.

India disputes this citing the book "Raiders in Kashmir" in which Major General Akbar Khan, a Pakistani states the following "I wrote out a plan under the title 'Armed Revolt inside Kashmir'. As open interference or aggression by Pakistan was obviously not desirable it was proposed that our efforts should be concentrated upon strengthening the Kashmiris internally—and .. to prevent arrival of armed civilian or military assistance from India into Kashmir...".

American journalist Margaret Bourke-White describes the plunder by the raiders:

"Their buses and trucks, loaded with booty, arrived every other day and took more Pathans to Kashmir. Ostensibly they want to liberate their Kashmiri Muslim brothers, but their primary objective was riot and loot. In this they made no distinction between Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims".

"The raiders advanced into Baramulla, the biggest commercial centre of the region with a population then of 11,000, until they were only an hour away from Srinagar."

Unable to prevent the advance the Maharaja, on October 24, 1947, appealed for military assistance from the Government of India. The Indian Government argued that in order for assistance the state would have to accede to India.

According to the Indian embassy:

“Whereupon the Maharaja signed the Instrument of Accession on October 26, 1947. A simultaneous appeal for assistance and for the state’s accession to the Indian Union was also made by Sheikh Abdullah, leader of the National Conference, and the undisputed leader of the people, who had for his views been imprisoned by the Maharaja’s government into September ’47 and released only under pressure of India’s Prime Minister.

On receipt of the signed Instrument of Accession from the Maharaja, preparations were made to fly Indian troops to the State. The formal letter of acceptance of the Accession was signed by Lord Mountbatten on October 27 making Jammu and Kashmir an integral part of India even as Indian forces were airlifted to Srinagar.”

Pakistan disputes this and according to the BBC

“Recent research, from British sources, has indicated that Hari Singh did not reach Jammu until the evening of 26 October and that, due to poor flying conditions, V P Menon was unable to get to Jammu until the morning of 27 October , by which time Indian troops were already arriving in Srinagar. In order to support the thesis that the Maharaja acceded before Indian troops landed, Indian sources have now suggested that Hari Singh signed an Instrument of Accession before he left Srinagar but that it was not made public until later. This was because Hari Singh had not yet agreed to include the Kashmiri leader, Sheikh Abdullah, in his future government. To date no authentic original document has been made available.”

Indian forces started pushing back the Pakistanis. The then Prime Minister of India asked the UN to intervene. The United Nations asked for a ceasefire and the present 'Line of Control' was created. The area which remained under the control of Pakistan became the Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Human Rights

(which has been critical of all parties in the Kashmir Dispute) - recently published a report on human rights in Azad Kashmir.

According to the report:

"Azad Kashmir is a legal anomaly. According to United Nations (U.N.) resolutions dating back to 1948, Azad Kashmir is neither a sovereign state nor a province of Pakistan, but rather a “local authority” with responsibility over the area assigned to it under a 1949 ceasefire agreement with India. It has remained in this state of legal limbo since that time. In practice, the Pakistani government in Islamabad, the Pakistani army and the Pakistani intelligence services (Inter-Services Intelligence, ISI) control all aspects of political life in Azad Kashmir—though “Azad” means “free,” the residents of Azad Kashmir are anything but. Azad Kashmir is a land of strict curbs on political pluralism, freedom of expression, and freedom of association; a muzzled press; banned books; arbitrary arrest and detention and torture at the hands of the Pakistani military and the police; and discrimination against refugees from Jammu and Kashmir state. Singled out are Kashmiri nationalists who do not support the idea of Kashmir’s accession to Pakistan. Anyone who wants to take part in public life has to sign a pledge of loyalty to Pakistan, while anyone who publicly supports or works for an independent Kashmir is persecuted. For those expressing independent or unpopular political views, there is a pervasive fear of Pakistani military and intelligence services—and of militant organizations acting at their behest or independently."

It also says:

"Virtually all independent commentators, journalists, as well as former and serving militants, Pakistani military officers and Pakistan-backed Azad Kashmir politicians speaking off-the-record told Human Rights Watch that there was continuing militant infiltration from Azad Kashmir into Jammu and Kashmir state, but were not willing to be quoted for fear of reprisal from the ISI. Most of those interviewed were of the view that though the level of infiltration had decreased substantially since 2004 (a brief spike in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake notwithstanding), there have been no indications that the Pakistani military or militant groups had decided to abandon infiltration as policy."

Kashmir Treaty

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Say Cheese!!!

Lalloo become Prime Minister and goes to Pakistan for one-on-one talk with General Parvez Musharaff. They decide to meet for about 60 minutes but finished in 5 minutes. Laloo first emerges from the room.
Reporters clamour for a statement.
Lalloo tells "Parvezbhai will make the announcement".
Parvez Musharaff comes out and drops a bombshell "Pakistan has decided to give up all claims on Kashmir, with no strings attached"
The world is stunned. Lalloo has achieved in 5 minutes what others had failed to in 50 years!
How did you do it, what did you promise, the press clamours.
Lalloo says "Yeh sab idea akhabar-waalon ka hai, Woh kehte hain na, TV loge tho fridge free doonga, video khareedein to cellphone free... tho ham bhi Parvezbhai se keh diye: "Aapko Kashmir chaahiye na? Le jaayie. Magar, saath mein bihar free milega, bas!"

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

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The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is India's national space agency. With its headquarters in Bangalore, the ISRO employs approximately 20,000 people, with a budget around 815 million USD at March 2006 exchange rate. Its mandate is the development of technologies related to space and their application to India's development. The current Chairman of ISRO is G. Madhavan Nair. In addition to domestic payloads, it offers international launch services. ISRO currently launches satellites using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle and the GSLV for geostationary satellites.

History of Indian space research

India's experience in rocketry began in ancient times when fireworks were first used in the country, a technology invented in neighbouring China, and which had an extensive two-way exchange of ideas and goods with India, connected by the Silk Road. Military use of rockets by Indians during the Mysore War against the British inspired William Congreve to invent the Congreve rocket, predecessor of modern artillery rockets, in 1804. After India gained independence from British occupation in 1947, Indian scientists and politicians recognized the potential of rocket technology in both defence applications, and for research and development. Recognizing that a country as demographically large as India would require its own independent space capabilities, and recognising the early potential of satellites in the fields of remote sensing and communication, these visionaries set about establishing a space research organisation.

1960-1970

Dr. Vikram Sarabhai was the founding father of the Indian space program, and is considered a scientific visionary by many, as well as a national hero. After the launch of Sputnik in 1957, he recognized the potential that satellites provided. India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, who saw scientific development as an essential part of India's future, placed space research under the jurisdiction of the Department of Atomic Energy in 1961. The DAE director Homi Bhabha, who was father of India's atomic programme, then established the Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR) with Dr. Sarabhai as Chairman in 1962.

Unlike every other major space programme with the exception of Japan and Europe, India's capabilities were not born out of an existing military ballistic missile programme, but instead out of the practical goal of eventually having satellite launch capabilities. From its establishment in 1962, the Indian space programme began establishing itself with the launch of sounding rockets, which was complimented by India's geographical proximity to the equator. These were launched from the newly-established Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS), built near Thiruvananthapuram in southern Kerala. Initially, American sounding rockets like the Nike-Apache, and French sounding rockets like the Centaure, were fired and used for studying the upper atmospheric electrojet, which until then had only been studied from ship-based sounding rocket launches in the Pacific Ocean. These were soon followed by British and Russian rockets. However, since day one, the space programme had grand ambitions of developing indigenous technology and India soon began developing its own sounding rockets, using solid propellants - these were called the Rohini family of sounding rockets.

Recognizing the need for indigenous technology, and the possibility of future instability in the supply of parts and technology, the Indian space programme endeavoured to indigenize every material supply route, mechanism and technology. As the Indian Rohini programme continued to launch sounding rockets of greater size and complexity, the space programme was expanded and eventually given its own government department, separate from the Department of Atomic Energy. In 1969 the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was created from the INCOSPAR programme under the DAE, continued under the Space Commission and finally the Department of Space, created in June of 1972.

1970-1980

In the 1960s, Sarabhai had taken part in an early study with NASA regarding the feasibility of using satellites for applications as wide as direct television broadcasting, and this study had found that it was the most economical way of transmitting such broadcasts. Having recognized the benefits that satellites could bring to India from the very start, Sarabhai and the ISRO set about designing and creating an independent launch vehicle, capable of launching into orbit, and providing the valuable experience needed for the construction of larger launch vehicles in future. Recognizing the advanced capability India had in building solid motors with the Rohini series, and that other nations had favoured solid rockets for similar projects, the ISRO set about building the technology and infrastructure for the Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV). Inspired by the American Scout rocket, the vehicle would be a four-stage all-solid vehicle.

Meanwhile, India also began developing satellite technology, anticipating the remote sensing and communication needs of the future. India's first foray into space began with the launch of its satellite Aryabhata in 1975 by a Soviet booster. By 1979, the SLV was ready to be launched from a newly-established second launch site, the Shriharikota Rocket Launching Station (SRLS). The first launch in 1979 was a failure, attributed to a control failure in the second stage. By 1980 this problem had been worked out. The first indigenous satellite launched by India was called Rohini-1.

1980-1990

Following the success of the SLV, ISRO was keen to begin construction of a satellite launch vehicle that would be able to put truly useful satellites into polar orbits. Design of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) was soon underway. This vehicle would be designed as India's workhorse launch system, taking advantage of both old technology with large reliable solid-stages, and new liquid engines. At the same time, it was decided by the ISRO management that it would be prudent to develop a smaller rocket, based on the SLV, that would serve as a testbed for many of the new technologies that would be used on the PSLV. The Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV) would test technologies like strap-on boosters and new guidance systems, so that experience could be gained before the PSLV went into full production. This was in line with advice that Wernher von Braun had given when paying a visit to ISRO: "If you have to do anything in rocketry do it yourself, SLV-3 is a genuine Indian design and you may be having your own troubles. But you should always remember that we do not just build on success, we also build on failure".

Rather than indigenously develop liquid engines for the PSLV, the ISRO managed to strike a deal which would cut a couple of years from the development of a new engine. In exchange for a modest sum of money, and some Indian help with minor aspects of the production of the engine, France agreed to transfer technology for the Viking liquid engine to India. The deal was probably motivated in part by goodwill, but also by the fact that the French were at the time receiving little interest from the European community in the development of the Ariane launcher, forcing them to look elsewhere for support. The Indian version of this engine would be called Vikas.

Eventually, the ASLV was flight tested in 1987, but this launch was a failure. After minor corrections, another launch was attempted in 1988, this launch again failed, and this time a full investigation was launched into the cause, providing valuable experience, specifically because the ASLV's failure had been one of control - the vehicle could not be adequately controlled on removal of the stabilizing fins that were present on the SLV, so extra measures like improved manoeuvring thrusters and flight control system upgrades were added. The ASLV development had also proven useful in the development of strap-on motor technology.

1990-2000

It was not until 1992 that the first successful launch of the ASLV took place. At this point the launch vehicle, which could only put very small payloads into orbit, had achieved its objective. In 1993, the time had come for the maiden flight of the PSLV. The first launch was a failure. The first successful launch took place in 1994, and since then, the PSLV has become the workhorse launch vehicle - placing both remote sensing and communications satellites into orbit, creating the largest cluster in the world, and providing unique data to Indian industry and agriculture. Continual performance upgrades have increased the payload capacity of the rocket significantly since then.

By this time, with the launch of the PSLV not far away, it had been decided that work should begin on the next class of launch vehicles, intended to place larger satellites into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO), and thus a launcher partly derived from the PSLV design, but featuring large liquid strap-on motors and a cryogenic upper-stage motor, was devised - the Geostationary Satellite Launch Vehicle. Following the success of the Viking engine acquisition, ISRO had planned to acquire booster technology from the Russian space organization Glavkosmos. The United States, which had begun imposing restrictions on the Indian Space programme when India moved closer to the Soviet Union in the 1970s, opposed the technology transfer on non-proliferation grounds and imposed sanctions against ISRO in May, 1992. It is debatable as to whether this action by the US was relevant in terms of preventing proliferation, as cryogenic engines are never used in the construction of ballistic missiles, and India had plenty of technical capability to construct rockets anyway - some cite the incident as an example of rules being followed without reason.

Under pressure, Glavkomos halted the transfer of the associated manufacturing and design technology to India. Until then, ISRO had not been affected by technology transfer restrictions thanks to the political foresight of Sarabhai in indigenizing technology. However, when elements of the ISRO management cancelled indigenous cryogenic projects in anticipation of the Russian deal. Instead of cancelling the deal, Russia agreed to provide fully built engines instead, and India began developing an indigenous cryogenic engine to replace them, in the GSLV-II. There is still some controversy over the issue of the cryogenic engine acquisition, with many pointing to the decision to cancel indigenous projects as being a grave mistake - India would have likely had a fully indigenous engine operating by the time the GSLV launched if indigenous development had started from day one. Despite this one uncharacteristic slip in an otherwise extremely successful programme, and the loss of potential payload capacity over the decade that occurred as a result, ISRO pressed on.

2000-2010

In 2001, the first development flight of the GSLV took place. Despite this, the GSLV has had to suffer payload cutbacks, and has been delayed, leading some to question its usefulness as a launch vehicle. The indigenous cryogenic engine for the GSLV's upper stage will be flown in 2007. It is currently the most powerful Indian launch vehicle in operation. Due to the questionable effectiveness of the GSLV for the needs of the current decade, ISRO began development of a new launch vehicle, the GSLV Mark III (gsLVM3), which despite its name, is not at all related to the GSLV-I/II, but is in fact a new heavy launch vehicle, that will incorporate larger versions of proven technology, and be indigenously built. Based around the proven format of liquid main stages and two solid strap-on boosters, the GSLV Mark III (GSLV-Mk.3) will resemble the Ariane-5 and several other modern launchers. The first flight is scheduled for 2008. Although India has expressed the opinion that it can fulfil space interests without the need for manned missions, the GSLV-M3 would provide more than enough payload capacity for manned spaceflight.

India is developing a project to send an unmanned probe to the moon in 2008, as a first attempt at exploration of the solar system. This project, called Chandrayaan, will use a modified PSLV rocket to send a small probe into lunar orbit, from where it will survey the surface of the moon in greater detail than ever before, in an attempt to locate resources - other countries including the US have expressed interest in attaching their own payloads to the mission. Recently, during the visit of NASA chief Mike Griffin to India, ISRO and NASA entered into an agreement for carrying two NASA probes as a payload. Another more long-term project that has been underway, is the effort to develop a reusable launch vehicle (RLV) called AVATAR, similar to many other countries, but only for the launch of satellites. Theoretically such a vehicle, designed on the basis of scramjet technology, would be able to launch small satellites into orbit for a fraction of the cost of current launches, opening up many potential commercial avenues, and making certain satellite technologies feasible for the first time. A scaled-down technology demonstrator is scheduled to fly around 2008. Recently ISRO tested a scramjet air breathing engine which produced Mach 6 for seven seconds and it was successful. ISRO is continuing research related to using scramjets in RLVs after 2010.

ISRO has also entered the lucrative market of launching payloads of other nations upon its rockets from Indian soil. The upcoming launches of a spy satellite of Israel Space Agency in mid 2007, and of the Israeli Tauvex-II satellite, scheduled for launch in mid-2007. The CARTOSAT-II, launched on the July 2006, carries a small Indonesian payload of 56 kg.

ISRO centres

These centers are related to the ISRO:

• Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC)
• ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC)
• Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SHAR)
• Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC)
• Space Applications Centre (SAC)
• Development and Educational Communication Unit (DECU)
• ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC)
• INSAT Master Control Facility (MCF)
• ISRO Inertial Systems Unit (IISU)
• National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA)
• Regional Remote Sensing Service Centres (RRSSC)
• Physical Research Laboratory (PRL)
• National Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NARL) (previously National Mesosphere/Stratosphere Troposphere Radar Facility (NMRF))
• Semi-Conductor Laboratory (SCL)

Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology Thiruvananthapuram

The Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology is the national institute for the study and development of space science. Located in Ponmudi near Thiruvananthapuram, it offers undergraduate and graduate courses, and also serves as a research center. It is sponsored by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) under the Government of India Department of Space.

Major events

• 1962: Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR); formed by the Department of Atomic Energy, and work on establishing Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) near Trivandrum began.
• 1963: First sounding rocket launched from TERLS on November 21, 1963.
• 1965: Space Science & Technology Centre (SSTC) established in Thumba.
• 1967: Satellite Telecommunication Earth Station set up at Ahmedabad.
• 1972: Space Commission and Department of Space set up.
• 1975: First Indian Satellite, Aryabhata, launched (April 19, 1975).
• 1976: Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) conducted.
• 1979: Bhaskara-1, an experimental satellite launched. First experimental launch of SLV-3 with Rohini satellite on board failed.
• 1980: Second experimental launch of SLV-3 Rohini satellite successfully placed in orbit.
• 1981: APPLE, an experimental geostationary communication satellite successfully launched on June 19.
• 1981: Bhaskara-II launched on November 20.
• 1982: INSAT-1A launched (April); deactivated in September.
• 1983: Second launch of SLV-3. RS-D2 placed in orbit. INSAT-1B launched.
• 1984: Indo-Soviet manned space mission (April). Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to reach space.
• 1987: ASLV with SROSS-1 satellite on board launched.
• 1988: First Indian remote sensing satellite, IRS-1A launched. INSAT-1C launched (July). Abandoned in November.
• 1990: INSAT-1D launched successfully.
• 1991: Launch of second operational Remote Sensing satellite, IRS-1B (August).
• 1992: Third developmental launch of ASLV with SROCC-C on board (May). Satellite placed in orbit. First indigenously built satellite INSAT-2A launched successfully.
• 1993: INSAT-2B launched in July successfully. First developmental launch of PSLV with IRS-1E on board fails.
• 1994: Fourth developmental launch of ASLV successful (May). Second developmental launch of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) with IRS-P2 successfully (October).
• 1995: INSAT-2C launched in December. Third operational IRS (IRS) launched.
• 1996: Third developmental launch of PSLV with IRS-P3 successful (March).
• 1997: INSAT-2D launched in June became inoperational in October. Arabsat1C, since renamed INSAT-2DT, acquired in November. First operational launch of PSLV with IRS-1D successful (September).
• 1998: INSAT system capacity augmented with the readiness of INSAT-2DT acquired from Arabsat (January).
• 1999: INSAT-2E the last satellite in the multi-purpose INSAT-2 series, launched by Ariane from Kourou French Guyana (April 3, 1999). IRS-P4 (OCEANSAT), launched by Polar Satellite launch vehicle (PSLV-C2) along with Korean KITSAT-3 and German DLR-TUBSAT from Sriharikota (26 May 1999).
• 2000: INSAT-3B was launched on 22 March 2000.
• 2001: Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-D1 (GSLV-D1), the first developmental launch of GSLV with GSAT-1 onboard partially successful.
• 2002: INSAT-3C launched successfully by Arianespace (January), PSLV-C4 launches KALPANA-1 (September).
• 2003: GSLV-D2, the second developmental launch of GSLV with GSAT-2 successful (May).
• 2004: First operational flight of GSLV (F01) successfully launches EDUSAT (September).
• 2005: Launch of CARTOSAT and HAMSAT by PSLV-C6 from the second launch pad (Universal Launch Pad) (May). INSAT 4A Launched successfully by the European Ariane-5G.
• 2006: Second operational flight of GSLV (F02) unsuccessful July 10, 2006. GSLV-F02 was carrying INSAT-4C.
• 2007: Successful launch of CARTOSAT-2, SRE-1, LAPAN-TUBSAT and PEHUENSAT-1 on PSLV C7 on January 10, 2007.
• 2007: SRE-1 splashed down in the Bay of Bengal on January 22, 2007 and was successfully recovered by the Indian Coast Guard and Indian Navy, making India one of the few countries to have re-entry technology.
• 2007: INSAT-4B successfully launched by Arianespace on March 12.
• 2007: PSLV-C8 successfully places an Italian satellite, AGILE into its orbit on April 23.
• 2007: INSAT-4CR was successfully placed in orbit, on the 2nd of Sept 2007, 6.21pm from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, on a GSLV-F04 rocket. It is the first INSAT satellite which was successfully launched from India.

Satellites

Since its formation, ISRO has launched numerous satellites; they include the IRS (Indian Remote Sensing) satellite series, the INSAT (Indian National Satellite) series (in Geo-Stationary orbit), the GSAT series (launched using GSLV) and METSAT 1 (launched by PSLV). As of 2007, the total number of satellites of all varieties built by ISRO is 45.

INSAT series

The Insat series of satellites includes the 1 (A, B, C, D), 2 (A, B, C, D), 3 (A, B, C, E) and 4 (A, B, C) series. They provide Communication and Television relay services all over India. Most of these satellites were launched by the Arianespace for ISRO. But, the latest in the series, the INSAT-4CR, was launched on September 2, 2007 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota with India’s own Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, GSLV-F04,. This was the fifth flight of GSLV.

IRS series

The IRS series provide remote sensing services and are composed of the 1 (A, B, C, D). The future versions are named based on their area of application including OceanSat, CartoSat, ResourceSat. Some of the satellites have alternate designations based on the launch number and vehicle.

METSAT/Kalpana series

METSAT or Meteorological Satellite, is the first satellite built by ISRO to provide meteorological information and data. In 2003, METSAT was renamed as Kalpana in honour of the late astronaut Kalpana Chawla. METSAT 2/Kalpana 2 is expected to be launched by 2007

Technology Experiment Satellite

As the name suggests, Technology Experiment Satellite is an experimental satellite aimed primarily at fulfilling the role of spy satellite. The satellite has an image resolution of 1m or less, making India the only country after US to offer such high-resolution images commercially. The Kargil War prompted the rapid inclusion of a dedicated espionage satellite. It was first used to produce images of Iraqi military installations that were destroyed after US invasion in 2003.

Future plans

ISRO has begun the development of a mission to the Moon, named Chandrayaan-1. It will be India's first step towards exploration of deep space. In 2005, the Indian government approved Rs.364 crore (3,640,000,000) Indian rupees for the planned moon mission expected to be launched by 2008. It is interesting to note that apart from ISRO made instruments, Chandrayaan carries science instruments from NASA and ESA as opportunity payloads free of cost and with the understanding of sharing the data from the instruments. If the mission goes as planned, ISRO would be the sixth space agency in the world, after the Soviet Union, NASA, Japan, European Space Agency and China, to have sent an unmanned mission to the Moon. ISRO also plans to undertake a totally indigenous manned space exploration in the next decade by planning to send a person to space by 2014.

ISRO has started the development of the next launch vehicle version, known as the GSLV Mark-III, with an indigenous cryogenic engine capable of launching satellites weighing up to 6 tons in the final configuration. ISRO will be launching various satellites for European and Russian space programs including Agile and the GLONASS series of navigation satellites. In December 2005, during the annual Indo-Russian summit in Moscow, the two states agreed on joint development of the GLONASS-K series, which will be launched by Indian launchers. ISRO also plans to launch payloads SRE-1, RISAT-1, ASTROSAT, OCEANSAT series, INSAT series, CARTOSAT series, and GSAT series over the next couple of years. The RLV-TD, a technology demonstrator of possible scramjet launch technology, will fly around 2008.

The ISRO decade plan includes the following launch schedule:

• 2006-2007 - Three GSLV launches, (GSLV-D3, F2, F3). Launch of OCEANSAT-2, GSAT-4, INSAT-4D.
• 2007-2008 - Three PSLV launches, (PSLV-C9, C10, C11), two GSLV launches (GSLV-F4, F5), and one GSLV-III launch (GSLV-III-D1). Launch of CHANDRAYAAN, ASTROSAT, RISAT-1, GSAT (MK III), INSAT-3D and INSAT-4E.

Launch vehicles

The Satellite Launch Vehicle was mainly used for the launching of experimental Rohini Satellites, and was a technology bridge. The Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle was mainly used for the launching of Stretched Rohini Satellite Series (SROSS) satellites, and also served as a technology bridge. The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle serves as a small-medium satellite launching workhorse for the ISRO. The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle serves as a medium lifter. The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III will be a medium-heavy lifter. The Reusable Launch Vehicle project is intended as a cheap way of launching small satellites.

Past

Sounding Rockets

• RH-75^[3]
• RH-125^[4]
• RH-200^[5]
• RH-300^[6]
• RH-300 Mk II^[7]
• RH-560^[8]

Satellite Launch Vehicles

• Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV) - an all-solid four-stage satellite launch vehicle. The SLV can place 40 kg into low earth orbit.
• Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV) - an all-solid five-stage satellite launch vehicle. The ASLV can place 150 kg into low earth orbit.

Present

• Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) - a four-stage rocket with liquid and solid stages. The PSLV can place 1600 kg into polar sun synchronous orbit.

• Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark I/II (GSLV-I/II) - a three-stage rocket with solid, liquid and cryo stages. The GSLV can place 2200 kg into geostationary transfer orbit.

Future

• Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV-III) - a three-stage rocket with solid, liquid and cryo stages. The GSLV can place 4000-6000 kg into geostationary transfer orbit.

• Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) - a small remote-piloted scramjet vehicle called AVATAR. The RLV will place small satellites into LEO and can be reused for at least 100 launches reducing the cost of launching satellites.

Launch facilities

ISRO operates 3 launch stations:

• Thumba (TERLS - Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station/Vikram Sarabhai Space Center, Kerala),
• Shriharikota (SRLS - Shriharikota Rocket Launching Station/Satish Dhawan Space Center, Andhra Pradesh).
• Balasore (BRLS - Balasore Rocket Launching Station, Orissa).

The Shriharikota range is used for launch of satellites and multi-stage rockets. The launch station has two launch pads including the newest Universal Launch Pad. The two launch pads allow the station to hold up to 6 launches per year. The other two launch facilities are capable of launching sounding rockets, and other small rockets that don't produce spent stages.

Opinions and analysis

Historical Budget

Year	Indian Rupee	Exchange Rate	US dollar
2001			~505m
2004-05	~25bn
2005-06	31.48bn		~722m
2006-07	29.97bn		~800m
2007-08	38.60bn		~1000m

In common with other national space programmes, the ISRO attracts comparison, criticism, and praise.

Comparison with other space agencies

It is suggested that in terms of technical expertise and experience, ISRO is close to other major Asian space programs, especially China, and in some respects to Japan. Continued development of reliable and cost-effective launch platforms are expected to see commercial costs of launching payloads on Indian rockets fall, perhaps by as much as fifty percent. Once established, the Indian GSLV-III should be able to place 4000 to 6000 kg payloads into GTO.

In terms of funding, at approx. $800mn, ISRO and Russian Space Agency currently enjoy similar levels of financial support. At same time, ISRO's budget is likely to expand as India's economic growth continues. Compared to the US, which spends around $16bn, ESA's $3.5bn ( or $7bn with other European nations), Japan's $1.6bn, and China's $1.2bn, this amount is fairly modest. However, it has also been pointed out that the budget figure is much higher for India and China when accounting for purchasing power parity (PPP). Due to lower cost of living in these countries, the amount of capital invested upon wages and employment are much lower, than, say in the US, where more than a third of the budget goes into wages and similar services. Canada and Brazil with $300mn and $35mn respectively spend relatively less on their space programs.

Despite ISRO's modest funding, it appears to have achieved reasonable successes. India is counted amongst the six major space powers of the world, and is among the top nations in Asia in terms of success and future potential in space. Indian launch vehicles have the capacity for human spaceflight^, however, ISRO has stated that it can achieve all India's commercial and scientific needs through unmanned spaceflight alone, raising the question of whether a crewed spaceflight will occur.

Question of crewed missions

Although India has already sent its first cosmonaut Rakesh Sharma, into space with the Soviet Intercosmos program aboard the Soyuz T-11 capsule on April 2, 1984, the question of sending a human independently has been raised.

The question of having a manned space programme in future was first substantially raised in November 2006 in the form a proposal. It outlined a goal which would be to design, develop and launch an Indian human spacecraft, a two-seat space capsule, which would be used to send an Indian into space by 2015 . The vehicle would be launched by India’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-Mk II).

Government has approved the project and allocated 50 crores for pre-project initiatives for 2007-08. A manned mission into space would require about Rs. 10,000 crore ($3 billion) over an eight-year period.

The first signs of having a manned space programme 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 technology.

Despite this, India's attitude towards crewed spaceflight seems to be conservative, with the ISRO believing it can accomplish all its goals through unmanned spaceflight alone. ISRO recently announced its intent to put an Indian in space by 2014.

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FYI: There are many external links (text with blue color) in the post, please use them for more information and to check for terminologies.

Say Cheese!!!