Will the Minister of SPACE be pleased to state:-

(a) whether the Government is set to launch an indigenous satellite with `Unique` capability to capture images in all weather conditions which will remove dependency on foreign satellites for this purpose;

(b) if so, the details thereof;

(c) the sectors that will benefited with the launching of the said satellite;

(d) the time by which it is likely to be launched;

(e) the foreign exchange to be saved as a result of its launch; and

(f) the steps taken/being taken by the Union Government to remove the dependency on foreign satellites?

ANSWER: MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PG & PENSIONS AND IN THE PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE (SHRI V. NARAYANASAMY):

(a) & (b) The country`s first indigenously designed microwave imaging satellite, Radar Imaging Satellite (RISAT-1) was launched, by Indian Space Research Organisation, onboard India`s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV C-19) on April 26, 2012 from Sriharikota. The satellite with C-band Synthetic Aperture Radar facilitates cloud penetration and imaging even without sunlight.For RISAT-1, imaging sessions around both 6 AM and 6PM are chosen.

(c) The sectors that will be benefited with the launch of RISAT-1 are primarily agriculture, disaster management support and forestry.

(d) The RISAT-1 satellite has been successfully launched on April 26, 2012 at 05:47 hrs using Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV C-19.

(e) India has been depending on foreign satellite images to meet the application requirements with respect to microwave imaging. The foreign exchange incurred for acquisition of such images is about US $ 1 million on annual basis. Acquisition of such data involves time, availability of such satellite images and the expenditure for procurement. With the availability of RISAT-1 such dependencies on foreign agencies is reduced. Imaging under cloud cover conditions, particularly in the monsoon, will be done using our own microwave satellite.

(f) The Central Government has taken necessary measures to build and launch additional earth observation, communication and navigation satellites in order to reduce dependency on the foreign satellites. A constellation of communication and earth observation satellites are already providing necessary services to the nation.

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