A lunar ambition

According to the reports published recently, ISRO plans to put an Indian in space by 2014 and another on the moon by 2020.

Ambitious.

The manned mission into space is likely to cost around Rs 10,000 crore.

This may trigger a debate.

A debate on ‘costs’ and national ‘priorities’.

However, for a country like India, it is a must to own the technology.

Not only owning the technology but also creating a space in space technology.

And there is a cost attached to that.

Most of the time, a prohibitive cost.

But if investments are not made now, there are possibilities that ‘this research domain’ may go out of the domain of many countries.

Some may argue that the ‘elitism associated with’ are the ‘privileges of a few’ only.

Hence, let us touch the moon.

Before it goes out of reach.