THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A longside being credited with a slew of successful space missions, including operationalisation of PSLV and GSLV’s first successful test flight, former Indian Space Research Organisation chief K Kasturirangan is remembered for another achievement: The effective handling of the infamous espionage case, that, if left unchecked, would have derailed the country’s space programme.
It was in 1994 that the case first broke out. Kasturirangan had then just taken over as Isro chairman. However, he managed to contain the fallout and ensured that the space agency stayed on track with its mission objectives.
But, the case triggered major concerns. The situation worsened to the point where six senior scientists including A E Muthunayagam – then director of the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) – figured on the list of people likely to be arrested by state police, recalled G Madhavan Nair, who was also closely involved in the developments.
The crisis was averted after a call was made to the then Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao. “This helped put an end to the scandal. Had it not happened, the situation would have worsened,” added Nair, who went on to succeed Kasturirangan as ISRO chief.
He said Isro’s internal response during the period was calm and pragmatic. One of the major goals set at the time was the successful launch of the PSLV rocket. PSLV was successfully launched on October 15, 1994 with the IRS-P2 satellite.
“When Kasturirangan arrived to review the situation a month later, the decision was clear. We would not let the episode derail our work. That helped us maintain focus,” added Nair.