Space achievements now part of NCERT modules

Marking National Space Day, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has released special learning modules on India’s space achievements.

Titled “India: A Rising Space Power”, the book for middle and secondary stage students traces India’s journey in space exploration from 1962 to the present.

“India’s space programme was initiated in 1962 with the formation of the Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR) by the Government of India. This marked the beginning of the country’s remarkable journey into space exploration. Visionaries like Dr Vikram Sarabhai and Dr Homi Jehangir Bhabha, along with a committed group of scientists, laid the groundwork for an indigenous space initiative. In 1969, INCOSPAR evolved into the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), with Dr Sarabhai as its founding Chairman,” the book notes.

The modules recount how India launched its first rocket from Thumba to study the atmosphere and weather, and highlight more recent milestones such as the Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan), the Chandrayaan missions and the joint NASA-ISRO launch of the NISAR satellite.

It also describes the launch of Aditya-L1 in 2024 as a landmark achievement that established ISRO among the world’s leading space agencies. Another section covers the Axiom-4 mission and the conversation between astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“India has pronounced Space Vision 2047. It targets establishing Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS) in the space. For these ambitious goals, India aims to work rigorously on projects like Chandrayaan-4, Gaganyaan (its pilot missions and human rated flight), Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM), development of next generation satellite launch vehicle, establishment of new spaceports, etc,” an excerpt from the book says.