‘History’ of ISRO, @TrueIndology, Liberal liars, ‘Of course, Nehru did everything!’ – notes
March 29, 2019
A fine twitter handle, @TrueIndology said the following about ISRO – debunking the narrative peddled by illiterate propagandists of Congress/Liberals & ‘Nehru did EVERYTHING and was responsible for anything positive about India, that’s even worth mentioning!’ brigade of whitewashers.
What young @TrueIndology said/says is ABSOLUTELY true.
More facts (verified history) about ISRO, PRL and ’INCOSPAR’ – reaffirming what @TrueIndology says.
1. It was Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai – the farsighted visionary who guided the space related explorations (with the funds that he mobilized from industrialists, friends and personal resources) of India, and Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) of Ahmedabad who should claim DUE credit for ISRO which got set up later. (of course the grand ghulams of a grander Nehru can always preposterously claim credit for everything and anything!)
2. PRL, the brainchild of Sarabhai, which contributed MOST engineers and scientists to space efforts – was actually a private enterprise at that time. INCOSPAR – Indian National Committee for Space Research – was only a steering COMMITTEE that started off in 1962. Even in INCOSPAR, the chief force was Sarabhai.
3. PRL was initiated by Sarabhai, operating from his HOME in Ahmedabad, even before Indian independence, to research primarily on Cosmic Rays. He was a student of CV Raman.
4. PRL got established formally on Nov 11,1947 – at the M. G. Science College, Ahmedabad, with support from the Karmkshetra Educational Foundation & the Ahmedabad Education Society.
4. Later, it got some grants (like any establishment doing research can) from Atomic Energy Commission to study some aspects of Theoretical Physics and Atmospherics. A bunch of renowned scientists joined to work with and/or advise PRL.
5. ONLY in 1963, PRL became a quasi-Govt body – It was then registered as a Trust by a quadripartite agreement between: 1) Department of Atomic Energy, Govt. of India, 2) Gujarat Government, 3) Karmakshetra Education Foundation & 4) Ahmedabad Education Society. It continues as it is, as a Trust.
6. Sarabhai put together an insanely great team of experts – such as EV Chitnis (he set up the Satellite Telemetry Station at PRL in 1961!), PD Bhavsar, Suresh Chandra Gupta, DS Rane, SR Thakore (arguably, the first Computer Nerd/Geek of India!), R Aravamudan, Vasanth Gowariker (fine propellant engineer), HGS Murthy, MR Kurup, RD John, MC Mathur, VS Kulkarni, YJ Rao, UR Rao… … This list is phenomenal! Volumes can be written about each of them… If my memory proves correct ALL of them except RD John, were actually employees of PRL.
7. The youngest among all, at the time of PRL reconstitution during 1963, was Abraham Muthunayagam; he was a rocket propulsion expert and went on to occupy key positions in ISRO later – in fact, I have personally met with this remarkable engineer in the early1990s at Mahendragiri – I was then a ‘budding’ (and then wilted) entrepreneur trying to supply some data acquisition system to ISRO. (May be, APJ Abdul Kalam was also part of PRL initially, and then joined TERLS team, but am not sure and I do not have that data in my notes)
8. All these folks had EXCELLENT academic qualifications, professional training and dedication to the cause. Many of them came back from USA and elsewhere (forgoing jazzy & lucrative career options), just because they were called to comeback and serve India – by Sarabhai. He had NO support whatsoever, in this respect from the Indian Government or from Nehru. It was his charisma that was critical.
9. In fact, there are SO many parallels between how Sarabhai operated and formed a great team at PRL – and the way Samurai/Ronin Kambei recruits and forms his team of Seven Samurai – a Kurosawa Akira classic. Both – lyrical, logical, effective – and ALL for a cause, beyond one’s own.
10. Sarabhai got SEVEN engineer-scientists to go to NASA to get trained on trackers, telemetry, rocketry etc in 1962. Of the seven, SIX were from PRL, which was at that time, still a non-government entity. They came back after a few months’ practical training and were instrumental in establishing TERLS at Thumba (near Tiruvananthapuram).
11. Sarabhai got the clearances to import and assemble the sonde rocket components from France and USA – for TERLS launches.
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INCOSPAR was just a co-ordination/nodal committee (whose first member-secreatary was, incidentally, that capable EV Chitnis). And this was set up in 1962.
INCOSPAR did NOT grow into ISRO. It was SUPERCEDED by ISRO.
It was a major wing of PRL – a private entity, and a brain child of Sarabhai which ultimately became ISRO. Thanks.
And, MANY things could be blamed on Nehru, but definitely NOT ISRO, sorry and thanks again!
If Nehru were actually a father or uncle or progenitor or whatever of ISRO, he could have formed at least a committee for space exploration, in all those years from 1947 to 1961, yeah? It is not that Sarabhai was NOT known to Nehru prior to 1962, yeah?
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POSTSCRIPT: Of course, the irresponsible Liberal Liars will continue to manipulate / edit / change the wikipedia entries to make it sound as if Nehru was INSTRUMENTAL in the development of ISRO; but, as responsible citizens of Bharat, who base their arguments on evidence and facts of the case – we know otherwise.
Look at the frenzied changes that are being undertaken for the entry of INCOSPAR on Wikipedia! Scumbag twistorians are at it again!
The diarrhea of edits and disinformation seems to have started off after @TrueIndology opened up his(or her?) fusillade against the Nehruvian propagandists!
Sop the SPIN, liberal congressi liars!
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If any of you want to know more details and relevant history of ISRO, from one of the ORIGINAL seven men (under the redoubtable Sarabhai) who got the first USA training, and who propelled the whole ISRO business later – please read the following authentic and racy book by R Aravamudan.
That this Aravamudan was himself a funda engineer and techie is something to be written about. (may be later, along with one on the venerable engineer Muthunayagam)
END
Other ISRO related entries at this blog:
- ஐடி தொழில், குளுவானியம், முதலாளியம், ஜெயமோகன், நமது ஜொலிக்கும் இஸ்ரோ ஆட்கள், வாய்ப்புகள், நம் பிரச்சினைகள், – சில குறிப்புகள் 08/01/2015
- மங்களமண்டலத்தியல் கண்டு தெளிவோம்! 07/11/2013
- ஜொலிக்கும் இஸ்ரோ, ஜிஸேட்6 செயற்கைக்கோள், பத்ரி சேஷாத்ரி பதிவு: சில குறிப்புகள் 27/08/2015
March 29, 2019 at 17:55
கிணற்றுக்குள் தவளைகள். எல்லாவற்றையும் இழந்த தமிழர்கள். மோதியைப் பற்றி அறியாமல் பாமரர்கள். மூளைப் சலவை செய்யப்பட்டவர்கள்
March 29, 2019 at 19:06
ஐயா, எனக்குப் புரியவில்லை. ஆனாலும் பரவாயில்லை.
March 31, 2019 at 20:42
I always thought pandit ji encouraged science..till Indira days top scientists had direct access to PM office..CNR Rao too vouches my belief..
April 1, 2019 at 04:01
Not really. Only a select bunch of people had access. A lot of these affairs to the contrary, have been recorded.
Am not saying Nehru did not do anything at all. However, the fact is that he is grossly overrated and there has been so much myth making over the past 80+ years.
April 1, 2019 at 04:07
For example – Meghnad Saha (the great scientist) has lamented a lot about it.
April 1, 2019 at 11:08
…and CV Raman did not like Nehruvian approach to science at all – and was a scathing critic of the way science/tech/engg were managed in a socialist manner in India… I have uploaded an excerpt from a fine/balanced book scribed by Uma Parameswaran – C.V. Raman: A Biography, Penguin Books, 2011…
Look what Raman says… in 1952, when Nehruism and Socialism were doing to Bharat —
https://othisaivu.files.wordpress.com/2019/04/screenshot_2019-04-01-c-v-raman.png?resize=438%2C438‘
July 24, 2019 at 13:20
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