BENGALURU: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman S Somanath on Wednesday said it is a contradiction when sensors used in rockets and space crafts are made in India, but the ones used in cars are imported.
Speaking at the session on space tech and defence on the second day of the three-day long Bengaluru Tech Summit, Somanath said, “You know, many of automotive sensors and sensor systems present in cars and automobiles are all imported. There is nothing made-in-India. We saw that it is possible for us to use the space-based sensors that we build in India, possibly produced at a low cost can serve this sector.”
He added, that for the rockets the entire sensors are made in India. “I felt it is a contradiction on why it is so. It is because of the nature of engineering. There are space sensors, and though they are made in India, they are at higher cost. So we need industry people to come in and work with us how on we can produce them at a large volume in India to serve the sector itself,” he said.
Somanath said Covid showed that even the availability of sensors can choke the product line of automobiles.
“So it is very important for us to invest time and money into all of these by organising workshops,” he said adding that they were organising a workshop in another week where a dialogue will be held between the automotive industry in India and the space eco- system.
He said indiginisation is a key domain for Indian companies build systems based on their knowledge.
“We are working on how most of the things be sourced from India and we have been substantially successful in converting many of components that are sourced from outside to be done in India and become a producer and exporter of some of the components for global users. Equally important is the transfer of technologies. We are organising workshops on the same,” he said.
Reacting to this, a senior IT-BT department official said, “The idea of making sensors in India will help the state economy where many EVs and automobile manufacturing units are housed. The biggest complaint of consumers is the cost factor. The indiginisation will help reduce the cost of vehicles. This will also help the startups. There are many startups and investors participating in the tech summit who will be interested in the idea.”
A representative from the automation sector working closely with the government said, “It is a good idea to work upon. This will help improve the automobile and technology sector in which Karnataka is taking giant leaps.”