Gandhinagar, Jan 22 : Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) chairman Dr V Narayanan on Thursday said the premier organization succeeds most of the time, but the couple of setbacks it faced were seen as opportunities to learn and bounce back.
Speaking in a pre-recorded video message at the 45th convocation of National Institute of Design (NID) Ahmedabad, he asserted that one always needs to have self-confidence and “can do” approach to succeed.
“You should also develop your teamwork and risk-taking capabilities. For example, ISRO, as an R&D organization, most of the time we succeed, but a couple of times we have setbacks, we take it as an opportunity to learn and bounce back,” Narayanan told the young graduates of NID.
Notably, earlier this month, ISRO’s PSLV-C62 rocket carrying 16 satellites that included a foreign Earth Observation payload failed to place them in the intended orbit after encountering an “anomaly” in the critical third stage of the launch.
A similar attempt in May 2025 (PSLV-C61-EOS-09) also did not succeed due to “motor pressure issue” and fall in the chamber pressure of the motor case.
Emphasising the importance of innovation over resources, he said a designer with imagination will always overpower an organization which has more money but less creativity.
Use your mind to bridge the resource gap, he told the gathering while urging them to aim, target and set goals to contribute in making India a developed country by 2047.
“When we got Independence, 94.4 per cent people were below the poverty line. Now we have surpassed the United Kingdom which ruled us and economically we have reached fourth rank. Nearly 12 per cent people were literate at the time of Independence and now India is home to a lot of national institutes including NID, with literacy levels close to 80 per cent,” he pointed out.
In science and technology, the nation has grown significantly, Narayanan said.
Recalling the “humble beginning” of 1963 when the first rocket given by the US was launched from India, he said, “In December 2025, we lifted the heaviest communication satellite of the USA on a commercial basis using an Indian rocket and placed it precisely in orbit.”
He also mentioned achievements of Chandrayaan 1, 2, and 3 programmes and other projects in 2025.
“We have declared 2026-27 as Gaganyaan year for the country and we are going to accomplish that mission by 2027. We are working towards multiple projects including Chandrayaan-4 and 5 missions, building India’s own space station by 2035, and a huge rocket programme called ‘next generation launchers’ under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We are also working towards sending Indians to the moon and bringing them back safely by 2040,” he said.
The NID and ISRO are working together on ergonomics and volume optimization of crew modules in the Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission, Narayanan informed.
The 45th convocation ceremony, on the theme ‘Imagination to Impact’, was attended by Distinguished Scientist and Director of Human Space Flight Centre Dinesh Kumar Singh, Principal Economic Adviser Praveen Mahto, and NID Director Ashok Mondal, a release said.
“A total of 543 students were awarded degrees across various design disciplines, including one PhD scholar, 355 graduates from the Master of Design programme, and 187 graduates from the Bachelor of Design programme,” the release added.
