Narayanan 'ISRO To Begin Rocket Launches From TN Spaceport Next Year'

ISRO chief V Narayanan on Thursday said that rocket launches from Kulasekharapatnam spaceport will commence next year.

Speaking on the sidelines of inaugurating a statue of pioneering Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin at the Periyar Science and Technology Centre here, Narayanan said construction work at the new launch pad is progressing successfully.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for India's second spaceport at Kulasekharapattinam, a coastal village in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin district on February 28, 2024. 

"The Tamil Nadu government has acquired almost 2,300 acres of land and given it to us. All work is going on successfully



there. Next year, a rocket will be launched from there," Narayanan told reporters.

The ISRO chief, joined by Russian Consul General Valerii Khodzhaev and the centre's Executive Director Shanmugasundaram, formally unveiled the full-sized statue commemorating Gagarin's historic April 12, 1961, spaceflight.

Narayanan expressed gratitude for Moscow's continuous backing of India's space endeavours, particularly the ambitious Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission. 

"A lot of support has come from Russia for this programme. On this occasion, I wish to thank the Consul General and the entire Russian team for their support for the Indian space programme," he said.