Sriharikota, September 20
It was a great leap forward in India’s space programme as ISRO’s geosynchronous satellite launch vehicle (GSLV) in its first operational flight today launched Edusat, India’s first exclusive satellite for educational services, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre here, 80 km from Chennai.

ISRO Chairman Madhavan Nair described the launch as precise and successful and said it had not deviated from its trajectory.

Hundreds of people, including employees and their family members, clapped as the rocket blasted into an overcast sky at 4 pm.

This was the 19th launch from India with the first one being on August 10, 1979, and the last being on October 17, 2003.

Edusat is the first Indian satellite built exclusively for serving the educational sector. It is mainly intended to meet the demand for an interactive satellite-based distance education system for the country.

The indigenous realisation and launch of Edusat will provide a substantial boost to countrywide distance education in India.

It strongly reflects India’s commitment to using space technology for national development, especially for the development of the masses.

Edusat is specially configured for an audio-visual medium, employing a digital interactive classroom and multi-media multi-centric system.

It is primarily meant for providing connectivity to the school, college and higher levels of education and also to support non-formal education, including developmental communication.

The scope of the Edusat programme is planned to be realised in three phases.