This mission is a prelude to Gaganyaan: Nambi Narayanan on Axiom-4 launch

India Today

Former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan hailed Shubhanshu Shukla’s Axiom-4 mission and said it was a prelude to the Gaganyaan Mission.

Transcript

00:00I spoke earlier with former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan,

00:04a very famous name, of course, in the country,

00:06on this landmark moment for India and global space collaboration.

00:10Here's that conversation.

00:13Mr. Nambi Narayanan, all of our hearts are filled, sir, today with pride.

00:18We've reached here because of the work of you and so many other ISRO scientists.

00:23How do you feel, Mr. Nambi Narayanan, seeing an Indian in space after 41 years?

00:30There's confirmation of the Shannon abortions.

00:32Yeah, I'm equally excited.

00:39And this is a mission.

00:41We consider this as a prelude to the Gaganyan,

00:47which is, we are working very hard.

00:50And then I think we are going to launch in the year 2027.

00:54So, this experience is something, I mean, I'm not able to understand the,

01:02I mean, it's difficult to tell the experience, the value of the experience.

01:05It is fantastic.

01:07But for the vehicle, everything else you are learning from here.

01:12So, this will help us a lot in carrying out Gaganyan.

01:15And it is not just the one Indian in this space, but it is the entire overall exposure.

01:24Very true.

01:26Getting into how the whole thing is organized and planned and executed.

01:29Yeah, yeah.

01:30Very true, Mr. Nambi Narayanan.

01:32You know that this is infinite knowledge, really, for ISRO to also help with Gaganyan.

01:37Do you see, sir, this also being the beginning of a space movement of sorts

01:42where we'll see so many more now shattering this record?

01:46This is the second Indian ever in space.

01:47Do you see that changing in the next few years

01:49that we'll have a whole lot more of Indians to boast of going into space?

01:57Yeah, I recall.

02:00I think this is the time to recall.

02:02When we had the first SLV launch, it was a failure.

02:09They named SLV as Sea Loving Vehicle.

02:14And when we went on ASLV, they named always Sea Loving Vehicle.

02:21So, that is the kind of response we had from the common public.

02:26And, but the whole thing got changed over a period of time.

02:30SLV-3, ASLV.

02:32Then we got the PSLV, 93, successful 94.

02:37And then not even a single failure kind of a thing.

02:41And in the meanwhile, we had the GSLV and PSLV and then Chandrayaan and Mangalya.

02:47Actually, what really turned into our favor was the Chandrayaan.

02:51And when we landed on the moon, it was a fantastic exposure.

02:57And then I am able to see the common man's reaction to this.

03:01Wherever I go, I am able to see.

03:03And the most interesting part I want to share with you is,

03:07the people who are very much anxious about this space

03:11is not a 20-year, 80, 50-year fellow.

03:14It's a 10 to 12-year-old boys.

03:17And they are the people who are really excited about the whole thing,

03:20which is good.

03:22Yeah.

03:23Awareness and then familiarity and then understanding the whole thing.

03:27Very interesting.

03:29So, afterwards, this has come as a game changer after Chandrayaan.

03:33And suddenly, Gaganyan will really, it will be really something

03:39which every one of us will be very happy.

03:42And then, of course, we have to wait for man on the moon,

03:44which will be 20-40.

03:47Yeah, yeah.

03:48Onwards and upwards, Raman.

03:50Very interesting.

03:50Space is always an interesting, exciting.

03:52Very true.

03:53Sir, do you remember 1984 when Rakesh Sharma had gone to space?

03:59I wonder if you could recall for us, what were the emotions then?

04:01Yeah, yeah, yeah.

04:06Well, honestly, we were having an emotion in the sense

04:09that there is an Indian who is going to space.

04:13Honestly speaking, I'm not undermining the Rakesh Sharma,

04:16but where were we?

04:19When we say we are having an Indian in space,

04:22we had only one vehicle, namely the SLV-3,

04:26which we launched in the year 79.

04:28But then, 84, five years from there,

04:32afterwards, so many things took place.

04:35You had the SLV-3 and then ASLV and then GSLV

04:40and then PSLV and then GSLV

04:42and then you had Chandrayaan

04:45and finally Chandrayaan where we landed our object,

04:51this one in the moon.

04:53So, step by step, we are gone.

04:54It is not an ordinary affair.

04:57If I recall, in the beginning when I joined ISRO,

05:01we were only 23 people totally, including the driver.

05:04Now, today in ISRO, I'm sure that it will be

05:08in the order of about 20,000 people are there.

05:10Many of them are engineers.

05:12So, that is a kind of difference.

05:16And the public response is really very happy,

05:18very exciting.

05:19People who were telling that this is a white telephone,

05:23no need to spend money on that, etc.

05:25In fact, that is what was holding

05:27the liquid system itself to come into the play

05:29because they were talking,

05:31oh, why the hell we should spend

05:32so much of money on this.

05:34But today, it's all changed.

05:38100%.

05:39I think it's a good thing that has changed.

05:42But can I also ask, sir, to you,

05:44you know, in the next few years now,

05:46Group Captain Shukla is now in space.

05:48The Gaganyan mission is coming up very soon

05:50as you highlighted Indian on the moon perhaps

05:52in a few years after that.

05:55Things are moving very fast now.

05:56But I tend to ask why in the last four decades,

06:00Mr. Nambina Rayanan,

06:01we never saw a movement where in 41 years ever

06:05an Indian made it to space.

06:07I tend to ask why did it take so long?

06:09Would you have a response to that, sir?

06:11Why for 41 years we didn't see any Indian

06:14go to space right up until now?

06:20Well, I really don't know how to react to this,

06:24but let me try to react to this.

06:26You see, it is not true when you say

06:29that there was no movement for 41 years.

06:31Yeah, there were movements,

06:32but the only thing is it was slow.

06:35Now, the reason for the slowness is,

06:39of course, as you know very well,

06:41it is funding.

06:42We, shall I tell you one thing,

06:45as the project director of the Vikaas engine

06:47or even the liquid systems itself,

06:50we never had any funding.

06:55This was not,

06:56I directly got the experience of it.

07:00See, what we could have done in three years,

07:02we took 19 years,

07:04not because of any technological problem,

07:06but because funding was not there.

07:08So,

07:10see,

07:11for any project,

07:12supposing you say that tomorrow

07:14that unlimited fundings are going to be available,

07:17Kanyan or anything,

07:19you can go,

07:20multiple routes you can go.

07:22See, you remember,

07:23I don't know whether you remember,

07:24but when we wanted to do the first liquid engine,

07:28Professor Dhawan,

07:28who was the chairman,

07:29an excellent architect of today's space program,

07:34he was mentioning that you try to do something

07:36without spending money,

07:37without asking for too much of money.

07:39What we needed,

07:40200 crores,

07:41he wants us to do it in 20 lakhs.

07:43That is the kind of experience we had.

07:46That is,

07:47that is the only reason for the delay.

07:49It is not because we were

07:51not having the intelligence to do the job.

07:55But the problem is that

07:57the money is very important.

07:59Yeah.

08:00I think that's the only reason

08:01I can think of

08:02and say it.

08:04Yeah.

08:05I'm glad,

08:05I'm glad that's changed today.

08:07I'm glad that there's

08:08will to ensure

08:09that we provide

08:10all necessary resources,

08:12infrastructure,

08:13and we're putting the focus,

08:14much needed focus,

08:15on growing in this particular sector.

08:17As you said,

08:18Mr. Narayanan,

08:19you're seeing a lot of passion in this today,

08:21with youngsters particularly.

08:23You're seeing a lot of interest,

08:25and hopefully in the next few years,

08:26we'll see many more group,

08:28Captain Shubhansha Shuklas,

08:29we'll see many more Rakesh Sharmas.

08:31Thank you very much,

08:32Mr. Nambi Narayanan,

08:33for your time.

08:33Thank you for joining us,

08:34and congratulations to you, sir,

08:36for this milestone.

08:37Thank you very much,

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