#AtoZChallenge - ISRO

(This month, each day, except the four Sundays, I will be blogging about interesting features associated with Bengaluru, formerly known as Bangalore, as part of the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge)

Indian Space Research Organisation is another premier national institution that is headquartered in Bengaluru. 

Indian scientists and researchers in the space segment are doing considerably well just as their counterparts in areas like information technology and pharmaceuticals.

From 1962 when ISRO was set up by the Indian government at the prodding of an internationally renowned physicist and astronomer Vikram Sarabhai ... to 1975 when India built its first satellite called Aryabhatta ... to recent years like 2019 when Chandrayaan 2, India's second lunar exploration mission, was launched ... it has been a long way. 

Two leading space scientists, Vikram Sarabhai (right)
and Abdul Kalam (left), giving shape to India's space
programme. Kalam also served as India's President.
Photo source: ISRO

CHANDRAYAAN 2

In September 2019, Chandrayaan 2 famously missed its mark by a whisker when the lander, Vikram, carrying the rover, Pragyan -- which was supposed to land on the near side of the moon -- deviated from the intended trajectory. (I blogged about this.)

A successful landing would have made India the fourth country after the erstwhile Soviet Union, the US and China, to do so. ISRO is not giving up -- it's planning another attempt with Chandrayaan 3 some time this year, or next year.

EDUCATION, COMMUNICATION

One of the early projects was the SITE or Satellite Instructional Television Experiment, designed jointly by ISRO and NASA, in 1975. It brought educational programmes to rural India.

A good junk of India's satellites are those related to communication -- a series called Indian National Satellite System, comprising a number of geostationary satellites, started in 1983. There are close to 30 of them. 

According to the ISRO, it has so far launched 111 spacecraft and done 82 launches from Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota, a small island in the Bay of Bengal off the coast of Andhra Pradesh.

It includes as many as 342 foreign satellites of 34 nations.

Photo source: ISRO

The latest was as recent as February 28 this year, when the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C51 sent up into orbit Amazonia-1, the optical earth observation satellite of the National Institute for Space Research, along with 18 co-passenger satellites.

CONTROVERSIES

Space exploration is also very controversial since it involves mind-boggling sums of money. 

Some say even a small percentage of money that is spent on space missions is more than enough to improve our lives on earth. 

But the other side of it -- a positive one -- is that a lot of our modern-day comforts, conveniences and solutions to many problems have some connection with what we have learnt from our space ventures. That can be another post on some other occasion.

(On Monday, the first day of the 3rd week of AtoZing, we look at something foreign in Bengaluru)

#AtoZChallenge - HAL

(This month, each day, except the four Sundays, I will be blogging about interesting features associated with Bengaluru, formerly known as Bangalore, as part of the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge)

India's defence sector for a long time was largely dependent on foreign countries, mostly what was then the USSR, and to lesser extents the US and France. Since around the 1980s, India has been making indigenous products, and the dependence on foreign nations reduced considerably.

The sole driver of the defence industry is the HAL or the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, the Bengaluru-headquartered government-owned company, manufacturing aviation-related products mainly to the Indian Air Force. 

The company has been doing well over the years. For example, according to this Business Standard report, it achieved a record turnover of more than Rs 21,100 crore (approx: USD 2.82 billion) for 2019-20, which is 7% more than the previous year's figure.

Image source: HAL website

The entity was set up as Hindustan Aircraft Limited in Bangalore in 1940, seven years before India became independent, by an industrialist named Walchand Hirachand, who has done pioneering work in many fields as diverse as shipping, engineering, and sugarcane plantations. 

It was established in association with the then government of the princely state of Mysore. A year later, the government of India became shareholders, and in 1951, it came under the control of independent India's ministry of defence.

Image source: Business Standard

In 1964, Hindustan Aircraft Limited was merged with another government-owned company called Aeronautics India Limited, to form the current Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

The HAL makes many aviation-related accessories like undercarriages and hydraulic and air-conditioning equipment, panel instruments, ejection seats, engine fuel systems, etc, besides a range of trainer aircraft for the Indian Airforce, and private flying clubs. 

Other products include engines, reconnaissance aircraft, transport aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, gliders, etc.   

Some of the helicopters are Dhruv, Rudra and LCH (Light Combat Helicopter). HF-Marut was the first fighter aircraft in 1964, which has since been retired. Different variants of Tejas are under development, with one batch of an earlier version delivered to the IAF in 2019.

The relatively new Heritage Centre and Aerospace Museum, set up in 2001, showcases the story of the Indian aviation industry and is a popular tourist attraction.

(Tomorrow, we look at another Bengaluru-based mega institution, which is driving India's thriving space industry)

#AtoZChallenge - Gandhi Bazar

(This month, each day, except the four Sundays, I will be blogging about interesting features associated with Bengaluru, formerly known as Bangalore, as part of the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge)

Gandhi Bazar, located in Basavanagudi, in south Bengaluru, is one of the oldest shopping localities in the city. A place that oozes old-warm charm, it is dotted with stores selling all varieties of stuff, everything from fruit and vegetables to clothes and pooja items.

The best-known landmark here is a restaurant with the unlikely name of Vidyarthi Bhavan, which roughly translates as Students' Home. There is a reason.

Photo source: Vidyarthi Bhavan

It was founded in 1943 by Venkataramana Ural primarily to cater to schoolchildren. 

In 1970, it was sold to its present owner Ramakrishna Adiga. During these 78 years, it's been untouched by the designs of modern architecture. 

While the clientele was students back then, it's people from all walks of life today.

The everyday rush of people to savour the delicacies -- mainly masala dosa -- is so much that people wait patiently for as long as an hour for their turn to be let in.

This is just one part of the famous restaurant.
Photo source: Vidyarthi Bhavan

This is the spices market. But one can buy many other items,
like daily provisions, too from this street.
Photo sources: The Culture Trip

The flower market is very popular.
Photo source: TripAdvisor/Cooltraveller2015

One of the road intersections at Gandhi Bazar.
Photo Source: Wikipedia

The streets are congested and parking of vehicles is a major issue. There are plans to redo the entire locality so that there would be a good walkway for the shoppers as well as dedicated places for them to park their vehicles.

(Tomorrow we move to something related to aerospace and defence)

REFERENCES:

Vidyarthi Bhavan

Why is Bengaluru's Vidyarthi Bhavan so famous? - The Hindu

Bengaluru's dosa heaven, Vidyarthi Bhavan, turns 75 -- Deccan Herald

Their dose tastes of nostalgia - The Hindu

https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/Food/their-dose-tastes-of-nostalgia/article5544575.ece

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vidyarthi_Bhavan

https://metrosaga.com/things-to-do-in-gandhi-bazar-bengaluru/

https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/opinion/sunday-read/the-grand-old-gandhi-bazaar/articleshow/57469865.cms

Photo of Gandhi Bazar

https://www.tripadvisor.in/Attraction_Review-g297628-d4401019-Reviews-Gandhi_Bazaar-Bengaluru_Bangalore_District_Karnataka.html#photos;aggregationId=101&albumid=101&filter=7&ff=152934973