It gives me so much joy to announce @dineshcsharma’s new book ‘Space: The India Story’ that I had a riot of time editing and am beyond thrilled to be publishing next month. Getting to publish Dinesh again several years after I last published his bestseller ‘Indian Innovation, Not Jugaad’ with @RoliBooks has been very gratifying. This is the story of how India, seen as an ‘underdog’, made it to the big boys’ club. It cost India half of what it cost #ChristopherNolan to make @OppenheimerFilm to successfully launch Chandrayaan-3. As we make leaps in the space-race with the most ambitious bid yet ‘Gaganyaan,’ this is a good time to tell the nothing-short-of-shocking story of India and Indians in space, their unsung biographies and starbound journeys, their heartbreaks and triumphs. @Jairam_Ramesh finds the book ‘educative and engaging.’ @NandanNilekani hopes this book ‘will inspire generations to come.’ & @JahnaviPhalkey bets that this book ‘will appeal to readers across age and professions.’ Out on pre-order now here: amzn.in/d/5yatNKa

Since joining the founding faculty of AIIMS New Delhi, G.P. Talwar has never stopped working at the bench. Along the way, he developed the world’s first leprosy vaccine, a hormonal birth control vaccine, founded India’s first immunology institution, mentored hundreds of students, and continues his research as he begins his second century. ✍️ @dineshcsharma thehindu.com/sci-tech/health…

Power shift in science agencies could lead to the hollowing out of expertise and talent in public-funded R&D bodies, says science commentator Dinesh C Sharma @dineshcsharma in The Tribune @thetribunechd #TheTribuneOpinion tribuneindia.com/news/commen…

My colleague @kannandelhi & I thought we will do our bit by penning a book, Maverick Jaspal. IOA President PT Usha went one better by announcing the Jaspal Rana Trophy for best female athlete & the Raja Randhir Singh Trophy for the best male athlete in the Asian Games. #Gratitude

Clarification regarding media reports on concerns relating to Space Sector Reforms and the role of ISRO ISRO’s Next Chapter: Leading India’s National Space Ecosystem There has been considerable reporting in parts of the media around the future role of ISRO including speculations and misinformation that there is an attempt to privatise ISRO or reduce its role. These assertions are completely baseless and incorrect. We wish to categorically state that ISRO will neither be privatised nor will its importance be diminished. ISRO will continue to remain India’s principal institution for advanced space research and technology development, national and strategic missions, space science and exploration, and critical and frontier space capabilities. Participation of private sector in space is not about reducing ISRO’s role. It is about enabling ISRO to focus even more strongly on the next generation of India’s space programme, while industry scales mature technologies and capabilities. What is changing is not the importance of ISRO, but the scale and structure of India’s space ecosystem. Towards an ISRO-Led Space Ecosystem The space-sector reforms initiated since 2020 and institutionalised through the Indian Space Policy 2023, along with progressive liberalisation of FDI policy, aim to create a larger, stronger and globally competitive Indian space ecosystem. Industry, start-ups and academia are being enabled to participate across the space value chain, complementing and multiplying ISRO’s capabilities. The reforms should therefore be seen as ecosystem expansion and capability multiplication, not privatisation. As India’s industrial and technological capabilities have grown, mature and scalable activities can increasingly be undertaken by Indian industry. ISRO has already transferred around multiple technologies to industry. Transferring a mature technology does not mean ISRO is withdrawing from that domain. It enables large-scale production, commercialisation, innovation and access to global markets while allowing ISRO’s scientific and technical manpower to concentrate on advanced research, next-generation technologies and complex national missions. The transition is therefore towards an “ISRO-led national space ecosystem.” ISRO’s Focus Will Move Further Towards Frontier Technologies ISRO’s role will progressively strengthen in areas where its scientific expertise matters most: frontier R&D, advanced technologies, human spaceflight, next-generation launch systems, deep-space and planetary missions and strategic national capabilities. It will continue developing cutting-edge technologies, including advanced payloads for communication, navigation and Earth observation, sensors, propulsion systems and other critical technologies. Meanwhile, mature and routinely manufactured systems can increasingly be scaled through industry. Production of mature launch vehicles, routine satellites and other established systems can increasingly be undertaken by industry or PSUs through appropriate competitive processes. This allows ISRO to devote more resources and scientific manpower to the next generation of technologies and missions, while the wider ecosystem provides the investment, manufacturing capacity and scale required by an expanding national space programme.

The high growth rate in bioeconomy is powered by changes in government policy rather than breakthroughs, says science commentator Dinesh C Sharma @dineshcsharma in The Tribune @thetribunechd #TheTribuneOpinion tribuneindia.com/news/commen…

Serendipity Space has successfully operated its orbital class satellite prototype in near-space and returned it to Earth safely. This outlines India's first successful attempt at producing pharmaceuticals outside Earth. The vehicle validated the core technologies essential for building a fleet of factories in space: advanced heatshield systems, avionics, and an autonomous pharmaceutical factory called Alchemy, carrying blockbuster commercial therapeutics in this mission. Built, tested and launched in under 6 months. Next step: orbit.

#Interview | Ethanol Policy Could Singe Modi Govt. @mkvenu1 is joined by @dineshcsharma to discuss why the Modi govt rushed E20 fuel despite its own ethanol roadmap, raising concerns over vehicle compatibility and consumer choice. Watch: youtube.com/watch?v=HFvwRvOy…