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Tribute To Dr Vikram Sarabhai, Father Of India's Space Programmes
Writer: Tashafi Nazir
For most people, journalism sounds hectic and chaotic. For her, it's a passion she has been chasing for years. With an extensive media background, Tashafi believes in putting efforts on presenting a simple incident in the most interesting way.
India, 30 Dec 2021 10:20 AM GMT
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Palak a journalism graduate believes in simplifying the complicated and writing about the extraordinary lives of ordinary people. She calls herself a " hodophile" or in layman words- a person who loves to travel.
Creatives : Tashafi Nazir
For most people, journalism sounds hectic and chaotic. For her, it's a passion she has been chasing for years. With an extensive media background, Tashafi believes in putting efforts on presenting a simple incident in the most interesting way.
On his death anniversary, let us take a look at his life and achievements. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) establishment was one such prominent achievement. He successfully convinced the government about the significance of a space programme for a developing country like India after the Russian Sputnik launch.
Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai was an Indian physicist and astronomer who initiated space research and helped develop nuclear power in India. He was considered the Father of the Indian space program. Being a great institution builder, he helped establish many institutions in diverse fields.
Dr. Vikram Sarabhai was born on August 12 1919 in Gujarat's Ahmedabad. The Sarabhai family was an important and wealthy Jain business family. His father Ambalal Sarabhai was a renowned businessman and owned many mills in Gujarat.
After passing the Intermediate Science examination, Sarabhai matriculated from the Gujarat College in Ahmedabad.
Later, he shifted to England and joined St. John's College, University of Cambridge. He received the Tripos in Natural Sciences from Cambridge in 1940.
After he returned from Cambridge to an independent India in 1947, he persuaded charitable trusts controlled by his family and friends to endow a research institution near his Ahmedabad home. He founded the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) in Ahmedabad on November 11, 1947, at the age of just 28. Sarabhai was a creator and cultivator of institutions and PRL was the first step in this direction.
He was also Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission. He and other Ahmedabad-based industrialists played a significant role in creating the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) establishment was one of his greatest achievements. He successfully convinced the government about the significance of a space programme for a developing country like India after the Russian Sputnik launch.
First Rocket Launching Station
Dr Homi Jehangir Bhabha, best known as the father of India's nuclear science program, supported Sarabhai to set up the first rocket launching station in India. The centre was established at Thumba near Thiruvananthapuram on the coast of the Arabian Sea, primarily because of its proximity to the equator. After a remarkable effort in setting up the infrastructure, communication links, personnel, and launch pads, the inaugural flight was launched on November 21, 1963, with a sodium vapour payload, according to ISRO.
Due to the scientist's dialogue with NASA in 1966, the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) was launched from July 1975 - July 1976, after his death.
Launched First Indian Satellite
Sarabhai started a project to fabricate and launch an Indian Satellite. As a result, the first Indian satellite, Aryabhata, was put in orbit in 1975 from a Russian Cosmodrome.
Due to his interest in science education, Sarabhai founded a Community Science Centre at Ahmedabad in 1966. Currently, the centre is called the Vikram A Sarabhai Community Science Centre.
On December 30, 1971, Sarabhai was to review the SLV design before he departed for Mumbai (then Bombay) the same night. He spoke to Dr A. P .J. Abdul Kalam on a phone call. Within an hour of the conversation, Sarabhai suffered a cardiac arrest and died at the age of 52 in Trivandrum (now Thiruvananthapuram). His body was cremated in Ahmedabad.
He was honoured with Padma Bhushan in 1966 and the Padma Vibhushan (posthumously) in 1972.
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