BANGALORE: Prof U.R.Rao chairman ISRO said the US imposition of sanctions against the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) were based completely on commercial consideration and were therefore unfair “unjust and technically cannot stand ‘to reason.
Addressing a press conference ere Prof Rao said the unilateral ion would affect the import 50% of the electronic comments required by ISRO from US. “But we will have to try our best to meet our requirements ourselves.” he added.
Declining to quantify the set-back y the national space program in terms of cost and time Prof Rao Said that the sanctions would not affect the country’s INSAT-II series though the impact on future programs could not be determined now.
Describing as ridiculous the US reference to the deal with Russia as being violative of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MITGR) Prof. Rao said that nowhere in the world was a cryogenic engine which is being brought from Russia used for missiles Since it contained liquid propellant and the solid propellant used in missiles was amply available and manufactured in India itself.
He said the Glovkosmos vice-president and the ministries involved had earlier themselves thrown open the contact for an independent audit to assure the US that the technology transfer and sale of engines to India was purely for peaceful purposes.
“General Dynamics Corporation of America would not have negotiated the same contract with India had they been doubtful of Our purpose” he maintained referring to the Rs 600 crore to Rs 800-crore quotation of the American space technology firm which ‘was abandoned by India along with that of the French agency Ariane worth Rs 800 crores in preference of the Rs 235 crore offer from Russia.
He said though the Union minister of state for personnel and public grievances Margaret Alva had contradicted it India was still in possession of the contract signed by General Dynamics with India.
He said India had already paid Rs 70crore of the Russian contract Amount and the contract was fully in effect.
Prof Rao denounced the MTCR guidelines as being “arbitrary and badly-defined by a unilateral combination of some nations.” He said India could not be self-reliant in the manufacture of the cryogenic engines being exported from Russia since the reliability buildup for this had to be very high and it also needed an insurance cost of over 10%.
On the likelihood of the US exerting pressure on the European Space Agency (ESA) to further setback the Indian space program Prof Rao said “I hope they don’t do it.”
Though doubtful about the US withdrawing its sanctions he said his political short sightedness could greatly affect the tremendous cooperation India enjoyed with NASA. He added that this was not the first time that the country was imposing sanctions against India and that it had been recurring for the last eight years though not to such proportions.
Article extracted from this publication >> May 29, 1992
