Dr Vikram Sarabhai and the vision of the Indian Space Program
ISRO is set to launch its latest earth observation satellite EOS-01 and nine international customer spacecraft onboard its PSLV-C49 rocket from the spaceport of Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on November 7. With the growing popularity of ISRO’s work, Indian citizens are not only proud but have developed a keen interest in the Space Program. Ahead of the launch let's discuss the man behind this organisation.
Vikram Sarabhai was born on August 12, 1919, at Ahmedabad in an affluent family of progressive industrialists. He was one of the eight children of Ambalal and Sarla Devi. He had his early education in a private school, ‘Retreat’, run by his parents. Eminent personalities like Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, J Krishna Murthi, Motilal Nehru, VS Shrinivasa Shastri, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarojini Naidu, Maulana Azad, CF Andrews, C V Raman used to stay with the Sarabhai family when they visited Ahmedabad. Mahatma Gandhi also once stayed at their house while recovering from an illness. Visits by such great personalities greatly influenced Vikram Sarabhai. Interestingly it was Rabindranath Tagore who wrote his recommendation to Cambridge. Dr Sarabhai proceeded to Cambridge for his college education.
At the beginning of World War II, he returned home and joined as a research scholar under Sir CV Raman at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru. His research interest in solar physics and cosmic rays led him to set up many observation stations around the country. He built the necessary equipment and took measurements at Bengaluru, Pune and the Himalayas. He returned to Cambridge in 1945 and completed his PhD in 1947.
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Dr Sarabhai was the founder of many organizations, to name some:
Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad Textile Industry's Research Association (ATIRA)
Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad
Community Science Centre, Ahmedabad
Darpan Academy for Performing Arts, Ahmedabad (along with his wife Mrinalini Sarabhai)
Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuramm
Space Applications Centre, Ahmedabad (This institution came into existence after merging six institutions/centres established by Sarabhai)
Faster Breeder Test Reactor (FBTR), Kalpakkam
Varaiable Energy Cyclotron Project, Calcutta
Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL), Hyderabad
Uranium Corporation of India Limited (UCIL), Jaduguda, Bihar
He passed away on 30th December 1971. Years after his death, in 1975 the first Indian satellite Aryabhatt was launched by Kosmos-3M from Astrakhan Oblast.
