By NNN-Bernama/PTI
Hyderabad : Warning that outer space may become the “battlefield of the future,” India proposed a “robust” international mechanism for protection of space assets since they were “vulnerable to attacks.”
New Delhi also told global space scientists to join forces in space exploration, asserting the world can “ill-afford the duplication of efforts and resources” in the face of many pressing priorities, according to a PTI report.
Advances in space exploration can be expensive and risky and “the question today is not whether we should cooperate but rather, can we afford not to cooperate?” said the Minister of State in Prime Minister’s Office Prithviraj Chavan.
Chavan was quoted as saying that while inaugurating the 58th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) here. Chavan was standing in for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who is recovering from prostate surgery.
There is a risk of extending the world’s conflicts into outer space and turning it into a “battlefield of the future,” Chavan warned in the context of space systems being used extensively to support intelligence gathering and military operations on earth.
“The decisive advantage that space systems provide also makes them vulnerable targets for offensive action,” he said, adding “in a world engulfed by conflicts and terrorism, protection of space assets is important.”
Since reduction of the cost of access to space was critical for taking the benefits of space technology to the poor, Chavan said a close international cooperation alone could make this possible.
“Space activities are challenging, exciting and ultimately rewarding,” he said. “They may be national in character but offer new opportunities for cooperation.”
Over 2,000 space professionals from 45 countries are participating in the five-day Congress being held in India after a gap of 19 years. Police threw a tight security cover at the Hyderabad International Conference Centre, the venue of the Congress, in the wake of the recent twin blasts here that left 43 dead.
Seeking a careful review of the present wide asymmetry in policy and regulatory environment, he said there was a greater need for promoting public-private partnership models in global space industry.
The heads of space agencies of Europe, Russia, Japan and China and NASA and representatives of aerospace industry from across the globe are participating in the high-profile event, with the theme “Touching humanity: space for improving quality of life.”
Chavan said Indian space programme had planned about 60 missions over the next five years covering a myriad fields like advanced communications, navigation positioning, space transportation, earth observation and space science.
All this will provide increased opportunities for commercial and scientific cooperation with India, he said.
Stating that India’s space mission was driven by vision of self-reliance and use of space technology for accelerating national development, the Minister said the country had acquired capabilities to produce state-of-the-art satellites and launch vehicles.
The lunar mission Chandrayaan-1, to be launched next year, was a fine example of international cooperation in the field of lunar exploration, he said.
Outlining areas of international cooperation, Chavan said there was an urgent need to design effective regulations for minimizing the menace of growing debris in outer space, which threatens future beneficial uses of space.