Having been criticised for having a space programme while at the same time receiving Western aid, India’s space programme has shown it can be a giver itself. The nation’s space agency ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) is giving a communications satellite to the eight nations of South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) for the purpose of providing communications for telemedicine, education, disaster communications etc.
The SAARC spacecraft will be built and operated by ISRO. It will be 2,000kg in mass and will be launched on a transfer orbit on its way to Geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) in December 2016 – probably on a GLSV launch vehicle provided by ISRO. The satellite’s communications payload will consist of 12 transponders operating in the Ku-band which will be used by the SAARC member nations: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
