the giants of the Indian space programme, Prof. Sarabhai
in particular, who had preceded this effort; next to the
hundreds of VSSC personnel who had through sheer will-
power proved the mettle of our countrymen and also, not
least, to Prof. Dhawan and Dr Brahm Prakash, who had led
the project.
We had a late dinner that evening. Gradually, the din
and clatter of the celebrations calmed down. I retired to my
bed with almost no energy left. Through the open window, I
could see the moon among the clouds. The sea breeze
seemed to reflect the buoyancy of the mood on Sriharikota
island that day.
Within a month of the SLV-3 success, I visited the Nehru
Science Centre in Bombay for a day, in response to an
invitation to share my experiences with the SLV-3. There, I
received a telephone call from Prof. Dhawan in Delhi,
asking me to join him the next morning. We were to meet
the Prime Minister, Mrs Indira Gandhi. My hosts at the
Nehru Centre were kind enough to arrange my ticket to
Delhi, but I had a small problem. It had to do with my
clothes. I was dressed casually as is my wont and wearing
slippers—not, by any standards of etiquette, suitable attire
in which to meet the Prime Minister! When I told Prof.
Dhawan about this problem, he told me not to worry about
my dress. “You are beautifully clothed in your success,” he
quipped.
Prof. Dhawan and I arrived at the Parliament House
Annexe the next morning. A meeting of the Parliamentary
Panel on Science & Technology chaired by the Prime
Minister was scheduled. There were about 30 Members of
the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha in the room, which was lit
by a majestic chandelier. Prof. MGK Menon and Dr Nag
Chaudhuri were also present. Shrimati Gandhi spoke to the
Members about the success of the SLV-3 and lauded our
achievement. Prof. Dhawan thanked the gathering for the
encouragement given by them to space research in the
country and expressed the gratitude of the ISRO scientists
and engineers. Suddenly, I saw Shrimati Gandhi smiling at
me as she said, “Kalam! We would like to hear you speak.”
I was surprised by the request as Prof. Dhawan had
already addressed the gathering.
Hesitantly, I rose and responded, “I am indeed
honoured to be in this great gathering of nation-builders. I
only know how to build a rocket system in our country, which
would inject a satellite, built in our country, by imparting to it
a velocity of 25,000 km per hour.” There was thunderous
applause. I thanked the members for giving us an
opportunity to work on a project like the SLV-3 and prove
the scientific strength of our country. The entire room was
irradiated with happiness.
Now that Project SLV-3 had been successfully
completed, VSSC had to re-organize its resources and
redefine its goals. I wanted to be relieved of the project
activities, and consequently Ved Prakash Sandlas from my
team was made the Project Director for the SLV-3
Continuation Project, which aimed at making operational
satellite launch vehicles of a similar class. With a view to
upgrade the SLV-3 by means of certain technological
innovations, the development of Augmented Satellite
Launch Vehicles (ASLVs) had been on the cards for some
time. The aim was to enhance the SLV-3 payload
capability from 40 kg to 150 kg. MSR Dev from my team
was appointed Project Director ASLV. Then, to reach the
sun-synchronous orbit (900 km), a PSLV was to be made.
The Geo Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) was also