Guwahati: Assam will soon become a prominent centre for space science, CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Monday.Sarma was speaking after laying the foundation stone for ISRO’s Advanced Radar Research Facility (IARRF) at Chandrapur, on Guwahati’s outskirts.The facility is being established under the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (Isro) Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) as part of Project NETRA, which seeks to strengthen India’s space situational awareness capabilities.Equipped with advanced radar systems and optical telescopes, the facility will help monitor satellites and other space objects and protect India’s space assets.Sarma said the facility marked a new chapter in Assam’s association with India’s space programme.“ISRO has proposed the establishment of advanced radar and research facilities in Assam to facilitate scientific studies relating to space and atmospheric phenomena. In response, the state govt allotted around 200 bighas of land at the former Chandrapur Thermal Power Station site to ISRO,” he said.Sarma said the first radar for cloud research was expected to be installed by Feb next year. The facility would also improve scientific understanding of weather and atmospheric phenomena relevant to Assam and the region.He assured ISRO of the state govt’s support and stressed the need to develop scientific temper among young people. He said the govt would work to connect colleges and universities with IARRF and Science City at Sonapur, giving students exposure to space science, astronomy, atmospheric science and advanced technologies.Sarma invited ISRO chairperson V Narayanan to visit Science City and urged the organisation to provide technical and scientific support for its educational and outreach programmes.“If we truly want to build a self-reliant Assam, then in the days ahead we must certainly connect the students and young people of Assam with science, technology and space science,” CM said.He called for greater collaboration among academic institutions, research organisations, govt agencies and industry, citing space-related activities at IIT-Guwahati.Department of Space secretary and Isro chairperson V Narayanan said the facility would strengthen India’s space situational awareness capabilities and support advanced scientific research.
