MADRAS: Any permanent sanctions by the US against the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will not affect us,” Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Rangarajan Kumaramangalam declared on Feb.1.
“More and more reality is coming out slowly,” Kumaramangalam told Newspersons here. he was reacting to a Washington datelined report On Monday saying that the US Tight impose “permanent sanctions” on ISRO in the wake of Russian President Boris Yelisin ruling out any change in that country’s decision to supply cryogenic rocket engines to India.
Referring to the reported US perception that the missile control technology would be made available to India through the cryogenic booster rocket engine technology from Russia, Kumaramangalam said even “any child can tell it is not true.”
The cryogenic engine was a fifth Stage engine meant for outer space, the Minister said and dismissed the possibility of linking cryogenic engines technology with missiles.
Kumaramangalam said ISRO, which was already under a ban from the US till 1994, was enjoying one of the best track records in technology transfer, and there need be no concern about a possible permanent ban against it.
He said all inter conditional ballistic missiles were cither solid fuel based or liquid fuel based and not based on cryogenic engines.
He said the Snhanikota launching pad near Madras was the most economical launching pacd in the world and in the “future space market,” India would become competitive, once it started launching satellites on its own after. This, he said, would be after “we have the cryogenic engine.”
With such a launching facility, India will become a “seller” in the space market which they (the US) did not want, Kumaramangalam said, adding that France had already a good chunk of the market for space launch.
Article extracted from this publication >> February 5, 1993
