Chandrayaan-1- India`s first Moon mission

In 2008, India successfully launched its first lunar mission Chandrayaan-1 by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientists. The spacecraft was set off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota that orbited around the Moon for exploring the mystery of its chemical compositions and topography. It accomplished almost all of its objectives before fading off the radars unexpectedly in 2009.

PSLV-C17 launches GSAT-12 Satellite

India`s PSLV-C17 successfully launched GSAT-12 communication satellite on 15th July, 2011 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. The launch of PSLV-C17 was the 18th successive successful flight of PSLV. This is the first time PSLV has been used for launching a communication satellite and is expected to meet India`s mounting requirement for transponders.

Chandrayaan-2- Mission in the pipeline

After the successful launch of Chandrayaan-1, the second mission, Chandrayaan-2 is expected to be launched in September 2013 as a lunar landing probe in collaboration with Russia. While the Chandrayaan-1 was just an orbiter, the next unmanned moon mission will have an orbiter, a lander and a rover. It is projected to be launched onboard Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle from Sriharikota.

India mulls human space flight mission

India is mulling over the pros and cons for collaboration with other countries for its ambitious human space flight missions. ISRO stated various models are feasible in undertaking future missions like - having a human being flown in Russian rocket or making a crew unit indigenously and use a rocket of a foreign space agency or to develop the rocket and related technologies on its own and assume the mission.

Dr Har Gobind Khorana: Nobel in Physiology or Medicine

Dr Har Gobind Khorana or Hargobind Khorana is an Indian-born American biochemist. He was born on January 9, 1922. He shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1968 with Marshall W Nirenberg and Robert W Holley for discoveries related to the genetic code and its function in protein synthesis. Khorana and Nirenberg were also awarded the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize from Columbia University in the same year.Four years after endearing the Nobel Prize, Khorana succeeded in synthesizing the first wholly artificial gene.

Dr Yellapragada Subba Rao: `Man of Miracle Drugs`

Dr Yellapragada Subba Rao (12 January 1895 – 9 August 1948) was an Indian biochemist, and was known as the “Man of Miracle Drugs”. Some of his major discoveries were: Folic Acid (1945), Methotrexate (1948) and Tetracyclines (1945).A fungus is named after him “Subbaromyces splendens” and a commemorative stamp by the Govt. of India was also issued in his memory.

India’s first Swine flu vaccine

Zydus Cadila became India’s first domestic pharmaceutical company to launch the country’s first home made H1N1 (Swine Flu) vaccine ‘Vaxiflu-S’ in June 2010. The drug, which is an egg-based, single dosed vaccine, is priced at Rs 350. Later in October that year, Bharat Biotech launched India`s first indigenously developed cell culture H1N1 Swine Flu Vaccine under the brand name HNVAC.

Compiled by Chonmipem Horam & Salome Phelamei