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Pakistan Space Agency Tasked With Launching Advanced Satellite

Posted on: Sunday, 27 March 2005, 03:00 CST

Text of report by Hanif Khalid, carried by Pakistani newspaper The News web site on 27 March

Islamabad: President Pervez Musharraf has given a green signal to manufacturing and launching Pakistan's own advanced satellite. Sources told The News that Space and Upper Atmospheric Research Commission (Suparco) [SUPARCO] has been reorganized and its scientists and technicians given the necessary incentives to make greater contribution to the country's entry into space on its own. Pakistan has decided to manufacture the latest satellite version and launchers indigenously.

Up till now Suparco had been manufactured weather forecast satellites, which had been launched through the satellite launcher of a friendly country. Scientists, engineers and technicians of the commission have started to accomplish the task assigned to it by the president. They are determined to achieve the mission of manufacturing and launching communication and surveillance satellite before the stipulated period. This satellite would play a crucial role in the prosperity and defence of the nation.

The former chairman of Suparco, Dr Salim Mehmud, when contacted by The News appreciated the directives of the president regarding manufacturing and launching of a multi-purpose satellite. He said Suparco provided foundation for the country's missile programme.

Some of the achievements of Suparco are upgrading the Satellite Ground Receiving Station at Rawat. This station would have the capacity to receive high-resolution images (HRI) from remote sensing satellites. SUPARCO has also put into operation the Aerospace Institute. This centre has become functional for imparting post- graduate education in the field of space science and space technology. It has done a splendid job of conducting feasibility studies for Remote Sensing Satellite and Communication Satellite. This organization has made deep studies on development of Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV), which would launch the proposed satellites into space. Suparco has successfully applied satellite images for survey of natural resources and national developments.

Dr Salim Mehmud disclosed that Pakistan had made a beginning in its space research programme in 1962 during the era of Field Marshal Muhammad Ayub Khan. At that time very few nations of the world had any idea of this new frontier of exploration by the mankind. However, due to lack of proper support and perhaps commitment, this programme did not make much headway except during the 1980s when General Ziaul Haq was president. General Zia was a strong advocate of this programme. However, the programme lost direction when placed at the hands of political forces. It is only now that the programme is being given a new direction by the incumbent president, he added.

Source: BBC Monitoring South Asia

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