Space tech for common man's benefit: ISRO Chief

Kannur, Jan 29: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman G Madhavan Nair today said the advances in the field of space technology would be used for the benefit of common man.

Talking to newspersons after addressing the 19th State Science Congress here, he said India was committed to use space technology for peaceful purposes.

Stating that weather forecast system would improve further in the coming days, he said a nation wide network for schoolchildren would be established for introducing the benefits of weather forecasting to them.

More than 380 scientific papers would be presented at the Science Congress being held till January 31.

Earlier, inaugurating the Congress, Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan asked the scientific community to take efforts for ensuring better returns to the farmers and better quality of life to the people. If science and scientific research were to have any meaning, scientists should rise above petty squabbles and egos and translate their researches into the field for the use of farmers.

Pointing out that except in rubber sector the state's other agriculture yields like coconut, paddy and other crops, were far below international productivity levels, he said the scientist community had to find solutions to this poor performance in a time bound manner.

''We need better seeds, better farming practices and better cropping systems and the excellent results achieved in the labs should be translated into the field,'' Mr Achuthanandan pointed out.

Though the government had taken various steps to mitigate the problems of farmers, active involvement of the scientist community was essential to take forward the much needed development of this sector, he added.

Stressing the need for Information Technology for modernising the service sector and to improve production sector, he said the state must take the maximum advantage of the opportunities offered by the Free Software.

On over-exploitation of natural resources, which had led to serious environmental crisis, he suggested that the state had to evolve scientific mining policies and processes for safeguarding it.

UNI