Gp Capt Ajey Lele (Retd.) is a Consultant at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi. Click here for detailed profile.
An introduction to ISRO, the organization that took India to space.
The end of colonial rule was an important milestone worth celebrating, but what lay ahead was a long journey towards the making of modern India. The narrative of ‘modern India’ would be incomplete without the stories of institutions that helped shape India as we know it today.
This volume, part of a series on Institutions that Shaped Modern India, offers an in-depth introduction to one such institution—the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It tells the story of ISRO from its inception to present times. Capturing its history and its evolution, dotted with several achievements and some setbacks, and offering deep insights into ISRO’s key projects—past, present and future—the book is an ode to an institution that has been at the steering wheel of India’s journey into space and has played a seminal role in nation-building.
Senior Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp. Capt Ajey Lele’s book ‘Institutions That Shaped Modern India: ISRO’ has been published under Rupa Publications.
Senior Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp. Capt. Ajey Lele’s Commentary, ‘Twitter Ban on President Trump: Opportunity for Introspection’ has been published by Society for the Study of Peace and Conflict (SSPC), on January 12, 2021.
The commentary analyses the business monopoly of social platforms like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and others, and their control over global digital content.
Senior Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp. Capt. Ajey Lele’s article ‘Behind China's Space Ambitions, A Battle For Tech Supremacy’ has been published in Strategic News Global.
Senior Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp. Capt. Ajey Lele’s article ‘How ISRO handled the pandemic’ has been published in ‘The Space Review’ on November 09, 2020.
Over the years, ISRO has clearly identified its tasks for social, scientific, strategic, and commercial sectors. The ongoing pandemic could force a reassessment of some of their priorities, but this pause in launches is simply unaffordable. There could be challenges, of course, but still the show must go on, writes Gp. Capt. Lele.
Senior Fellow Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp. Capt. Ajey Lele’s commentary ‘Artemis Accords: Unilateralization In Space’, co-written with former Policy Analyst, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Shri V. Gopalakrishnan, has been published by Society for the Study of Peace and Conflict (SSPC) on October 24, 2020.
Senior Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp. Capt. Ajey Lele’s article ‘The forthcoming 2+2 India-US deliberations: Here’s what to look forward’ has been published in ‘The Financial Express’ on October 23, 2020.
Senior Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp. Capt Ajey Lele’s commentary ‘Venus: Science and Politics’ has been published by ‘The Space Review’ on September 21, 2020.
The recent discovery indicating the possibility of life in the atmosphere of Venus is very exciting news for the scientific community. One can expect that now more research regarding Venus and its atmosphere will be funded, including missions by NASA and other space agencies, writes Gp. Capt. Lele.
Senior Fellow MP-IDSA, Gp. Capt. Ajey Lele’s commentary ‘Mars race rhetoric’ has been published in ‘The Space Review’ on August 03, 2020.
Nations would go to Mars only when they have clarity about their scientific focus and have capacity (both technical and economic) to develop spacecraft for such purposes. It is highly unlikely that, in the 21st century, nations will race against each other to conquer Mars, writes Gp. Capt. Lele.
Senior Fellow, Manohar Parrikar IDSA, Gp. Capt. Ajey Lele’s commentary on UAE’s Mars Mission, titled ‘The UAE’s Mars Mission: Lesson for India’ has been published by The Society for the Study of Peace and Conflict (SSPC), on July 22, 2020.
The UAE’s Mars agenda is clearly for a podium finish, and there is much for India to learn from this small Arab state. It would be advisable for ISRO to focus on one or two important projects and take them to their logical conclusions instead of trying out too many projects, writes Gp. Capt. Lele.
