New Delhi, April 12: After the successful launch of the navigation satellite IRNSS-1I on Thursday morning, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman K Sivan informed that the Indian space agency is not facing any funds crunch for its ongoing activities and all its missions would take place as scheduled.

While speaking to reporters in Sriharikota after the successful launch of India's navigation satellite earlier this morning, Sivan informed that work had already started to increase the carrying capacity of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mk-III to 6 tonnes.

Talking about ISRO’s space missions for 2018, Sivan said the space agency would launch 5.7 tonne GSAT-11, a high throughput satellite using Ariane rocket. The ISRO chairman further added saying that the space agency will be making high throughput satellites that weigh less but give the output of a heavier satellite.  He informed that He said the GSAT 29 would be launched using a GSLV Mk III rocket.

On concerns raised by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on the navigation satellite system, the ISRO Chairman said with the launch of IRNSS-1I, the system was now put in place and the applications would have to be rolled out. He said the industry has to make the necessary products so as to use the navigation satellite system. “We have developed our own atomic clocks which would be used in the upcoming navigation satellites,” the ISRO chief said.

To recall, ISRO’s navigation satellite IRNSS-1I was launched by PSLV-C41 from Sriharikota on Thursday morning at 4.04 AM. The satellite was successfully placed in the designated orbit. As per details by ISRO officials, it was a normal lift-off. The previous mission of a PSLV carrying IRNSS-1H in August last year failed after the heat shield covering the satellite failed to separate.

In March, Sivan has said that the space agency has a “lot of projects” and it was working on them. ISRO’s first priority is to serve the country and common people, he had said. “Right now ISRO has a lot of projects. We are working on them including India’s heaviest satellite GSAT-11 that would be launched from French Guiana soon,” the chairman said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 12, 2018 12:27 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).